The Kismet Blade
by File 13
Summary: A lot can happen in three years: people change, plans evolve, weapons are uncovered. But this weapon is unlike anything any of them have ever seen before. Can the inutachi stop Fate? Or will their souls end up being the key to a prison locked for millennia? And, all joking aside, will Kagome and Inuyasha ever grow up? (Post-Canon) (plus Author's Notes) COMPLETE
1. Moments of Time

**_F/W I don't own Inuyasha - that pleasure and honor belongs to Takahashi Rumiko. ALSO this chapter contains a lot of... Fancy wording. It's really just a prologue; the rest of the chapters are easier to read, and this one can be skipped! Enjoy this new work, and please leave a review!_**

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 **Chapter 1**

 _Moments of Time_

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Once in a great while, there are moments in time when all is right with the world. There are moments when the world spins and keeps spinning, smooth and silent, like a night time lake, with the midnight reflections of the stars and moon swimming on the mirror surface, never once disturbed. Or perhaps the moment was perfect like a meadow covered in snow after a storm, glistening bright white and clean, unmarred by anything more than the prints of birds or the gatherings of fallen icicles under trees.

To the outside viewer, these moments are forever frozen in the mind's eye, a perfect spectacle of beauty, the solemn and heartwarming confirmation that perhaps all could be right with the world, at some point and for some people. But with the sun on the lake comes the stirring of the morning breeze, the splashings of children and animals. With the warmth on the snow comes the snowmelt, the refrozen, slick stale ice and chilling sludge of half snow half freezing water.

In short, those moments in time where one would wish it would stand still and stretch from one end of infinity to the next must and will always come to an end. Such were the ways of fate: cruel, cold, and certain.

Now was one of those seconds of life, where all was still perfect, where all was golden and good, before harsh and unforgiving fate had a chance to grab ahold: it had been nearly a week by now; a week of pure happiness and much celebration. While those perfect moments seemed include the loud and rambunctious festivities of the rejoicing, they also encompassed those quiet moments shared so often between a couple. Such was now.

A breeze passed through the trees, the leaves shaking and muttering in loud discontent, but the two souls sitting quietly in the branches of the Goshinboku payed them no mind. They were asleep; perched precariously ten feet above the ground, but asleep nonetheless. The young man had been in this position, sitting literally on a limb, many, many times before in his relatively short life, and the young woman - barely more than a girl - held in his arms trusted her companion too much to be afraid.

Hardly 50 feet from where the silently sleeping couple were stood part of the source of the recently abounding joy: an old wood well, set meekly within the center of a grassy clearing in the woods, and which had been for so many years the source of the couple's sadness as well. Made from the wood of a sacred tree, imbued with magic, the Bone-Eater's Well wasn't only a place for discarding the bones of dead youkai, but the bridge between 500 years time: the past the young man was living in, and the future from which the young woman came. For the past three years, the Well was inexplicably sealed, preventing passage for the two between times, and it had at last reopened.

Celebration and festivity had commenced with the woman's return. For nearly four days by now, preparations had been made for a festival. People from several villages over had begun trickling into the small town, all to see the young woman. In the year or so she had been with them in their time (though they were not aware that she was in fact from 500 years in the future), she had become quite well known in the land, both as the kind miko in strange clothing and as the protector and destroyer of the Shikon no Tama. Her disappearance had been met with sadness by many, but none so great as that as the grief of the young man's, who now held her close.

There was something remarkable about the young man, just as much as the young woman. While she was a human from the future, but a human nonetheless, he was something more than a human. He was a half demon, a hanyo, and a powerful one at that, given his lineage, for his father had been the great Inu-no-Taisho, a daiyoukai who had ruled the Western Lands until his death over 70 years ago. Few had known of his existence, fewer had known of his mysterious disappearance, but it was what it was, and here was his son.

The young man stirred suddenly, one eye opening and gazing blearily around, and then the other. They looked black and gold in the sunlight and reflections of the leaves. He was unsurprised by his view of treetops and leaves dyed orange from the setting sun, nor was he surprised by the girl he held quietly in his arms. As a matter of fact, he smiled for a moment as he watched her, and then returned his gaze to his surroundings. No matter how happy he was, he couldn't afford to allow his attention to wander, or his vigilance to slip; such were the joys of being a half demon.

Of course, his vigilance was helped along by his canine heritage: his white dog ears sat pricked and alert on the top of his head, listening for any sound of approaching hostilities, his sense of smell was heightened beyond anything any mere mortal could comprehend, and even most dogs could only dream of. But there was nothing. Not now. There was nothing save the scent of the trees in leaf, the sound of the wind in the branches, the smell of slow-cooking meats and grains, and the young woman. Her breathing, her scent, her being. It was nowhere near intoxicating, simply a gentle, mellow aroma not too unlike any other human, but it was something that he associated with so many memories and feelings, it was like reading a book with every breath, and flying through the story with a new sense of wonder every time despite how often it was read.

"Oi, stupid, wake up."

The gruffness of the young man's words would have probably surprised most others, especially when considering his position, sitting in the tree and holding the young woman his words were directed at so gently - dare one go so far as to say lovingly? - in his arms. But a smirk spread across the girl's face though her eyes didn't open.

" _Kagome_ ," said the hanyo, more insistently, jostling the girl a little in an attempt to wake her. He hadn't seen her smile.

"Ehhhh," whined the girl, turning her face into her companion's chest. The hanyo rolled his eyes.

"If you don't hurry up, the old hag's gonna get pissed coz I didn't have you back in time to get you changed." ' _The old hag_ ', Kagome knew, was the priestess of the village, a spunky, sarcastic, yet very kind old woman by the name of Kaede.

"What if I don't wanna get changed?" Kagome mumbled a little, sitting up and stretching, pulling her arms behind her head before slouching back into a more comfortable position and patting her hanyo companion on the arms. "It's not like people are going to see what I'm really wearing. It'll be dark, after all."

"Are you seriously asking me what's going on in that woman's head?"

"Good point. You should be the _last_ person I should ask if I wanted to know what was going on in a woman's head, Inuyasha." Kagome grinned and the mildly wounded expression Inuyasha gave her before tapping him on the nose. "I'm teasing you. No need to act like such a martyr."

"I'm not," Inuyasha denied, rather weakly. "It was _your_ stupid idea to begin with, thinking I knew what that old hag wanted."

It was Kagome's turn to roll her eyes, shaking her head, but smiling nonetheless. "Whatever. I thought you were going to get me down, dog boy."

"Well you kept _distracting_ me!" Despite their happiness at being reunited, despite the peaceful serenity of the moment or how carefully Inuyasha gathered Kagome into his arms, it was simply part of their character and their relationship to argue. That was a comforting thing, when one considered it; it proved that nothing had changed so much between them that stopped them from acting as they had before.

Ten feet down to the ground felt like nothing as Inuyasha sprang down, setting Kagome down and straightening. Before he had a chance to fold his hands into his sleeves, Kagome grabbed one, smiling and pulling him along. She knew that despite Inuyasha's secret, anxious, sweet, longing, loving heart, his pride and his inconceivably low self-confidence would always contest with his emotions. She knew that if she were to wait for him to openly make a first move - even if that first more were such a small gesture as this, she would have been waiting for hundreds of years. Sitting in a tree together was one thing; he would write that off as "protecting her". But this was something he was both unfamiliar with and nervous of.

It took him a moment, but his clawed hand eventually closed around her own, moving and adjusting so that their fingers were entwined rather than held. His stride lengthened until he caught up with her. "I don't even know why everybody is coming to see you anyway," he grumbled after a few moments. "It's not like they really _know_ you."

"Well, it's the thought that counts, I guess," tried Kagome placatingly.

"Yeah, or maybe the lure of free food was just too much to resist," sniggered the hanyo.

"That's a long way to travel just for some food," Kagome reasoned, raising an eyebrow at Inuyasha.

"Well, when you're desperate." He let the thought hang free in the air, and silence fell. They had crested the hill by now, looking down at the village. Small fires were beginning to burn in the streets, and the huge pyre for the bonfire was already assembled in the centre of the village, near the water well. Adults were in from the fields, preparing themselves for the festivities, their children running up and down the streets, their playful cries audible even from here.

The moment the two set foot in the steadily darkening village, Kagome was swarmed by children. Some gave her flowers, which she had promptly handed to Inuyasha as Kaede appeared suddenly and pulled her away. And so he was left to wander the streets as he waited. Some gave him a wide berth as he passed them. That was expected. What wasn't expected was when people actually approached him, thanking him, wishing him well, a few children even hugging him around the middle. His knees, he'd noticed, were often also subject to such assaults, and he had almost tripped several times thus far.

What also was unexpected was to see Kagome wearing a dark, loose, almost kimono-like garment that left her free to move and dance around with those gathered around the bonfire. He even ended up being pulled into the dancers at one point - and awkward moment, considering he hadn't danced since he was a child, but an enjoyable experience all the same. It was dark, save for the roaring firelight which warmed them all as they pranced about like idiots, pressing against each other as they laughed, none paying the other any attention as they laughed and stumbled about in their traditional dances to the music of their drums and flutes and strings; one villager even possessed a strange instrument from the continent unlike any had ever heard of before (though Kagome told him later that the instrument was called a "guitar" in her era, and was a very popular instrument). No one persecuted Inuyasha for his heritage, no one approached Kagome except in greeting, and there was laughter weaving itself between the smoke and scents.

It was perfect.

And as Kagome dumped herself into Inuyasha's arms, laughing and smiling (for he had eventually grown tired of the dancing and strong smell of burning wood), she knew it was even more perfect.

And it was perfect like the embers flying white-orange and burning into the star strewn sky, glowing brighter than the galaxies unknown in their view, rising high into the air.

But those perfect moments in time were like embers, for with their perfect and brightness, after a few breaths, those embers couldn't avoid slowing and cooling and dimming and falling back to earth, once again leaving the quiet, cold expanse of an infinite night time sky exactly as before.

Fate was cruel, cold, certain.

Fate knew that all good things must come to an end.

And Fate knew exactly how to bring about the end.

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 _Glossary_ :

Shikon no Tama - The Shikon Jewel; The Sacred Jewel; the Jewel of Four Souls

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; priestess

Hanyo - a half demon

Youkai - a demon or spirit

Inu-no-Taisho - a title given to Inuyasha's father, literally "Dog General"

Daiyoukai - a powerful demon/youkai

Goshinboku - the Sacred Tree; the Tree of Ages

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 **A/N I was originally writing** ** _Wishing/Tomoe_** **as a sort of "closer" fic to Inuyasha, but it seems that only one or two people have tried reading it so far. It'll get better, I promise. It's set up kind of episodically, with one chapter being the equivalent of one "episode". I wanted it to have that kind of feeling to it, and I'm working on it. But I wasn't entirely happy with it, so I struggled and struggled to make another idea that more people would like, and this is what happened. It's a lot less structured (at the moment) than** ** _Wishing_** **, but it's got the characters everyone loves, sooo... Hopefully it's better? Also meaning that** ** _Wishing_** **is currently one hiatus.**

 **Are Kagome and Inuyasha in character at all? I want them to be in character...**

 **So here we go! Have fun, love yourselves, don't die, please review, okei bYEEEEEEE**

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 _Currently listening to: Stranger to Love - Charles Perry_


	2. Mother Knows Best

**Chapter 2**

 _Mother Knows Best_

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"So, you swore to kill the boy?" mused the woman, resting her head on the palm of her hand and gazing mildly at her son. "An interesting concept."

Inukimi was no stranger to plots. In her long life, she herself had been a part of many of them, ranging from being bait, to being the middleman with information, to being the conspirator themself. Often, when she had still been young and wild, those plots seemed to end with her and her one time husband fighting their foes, due to either bad planning, bad luck, or some accidental blunder the much younger, yet-to-be Inu-no-Taisho would have made in his inexperienced, naive youth. However, despite the incredible intelligence of her only son, and his obvious power, Inukimi simply could not for the life of her see the still adolescent daiyoukai "plotting" _anything_.

For starters, as far as she knew he had no allies, or rather, no allies that would be worth their trouble in a skirmish, or in getting information. The sniveling but prideful little green youkai that hung around her son's skirts could hardly be worth any help. The young human girl she had before seen her son with had no power at all, and was therefore more of a hinderance than a help, though she could have been useful perhaps for espionage or something of the sort.

Then again, only the puny toad demon was the only one following her son today, sitting despondently on one of the stone stairs where he had been directed to by his master. The little girl was nowhere in sight, and the great lady couldn't smell her either.

"This Sesshomaru has a plan, mother," answered her son, tilting his head back and making his regal expression more pronounced than before. "However, information in required of you."

"I'm listening," Inukimi said lightly, tilting her own head and settling back into her cushions. A few strands of her white hair curled over her shoulder, long, though not as long as her son's, or her late husband's, or even the hair of illegitimate half-breed her husband had brought about.

"What do you know of the Dog God?"

"The Dog God?" Inukimi looked at Sesshomaru with something like interest, for indeed, his question had sparked such. "You ought to be careful, Sesshomaru. If you go around asking too much of the Inukami-sama, you are sure to meet your fate by him."

"That is exactly why I ask of him," answered Sesshomaru.

"You wish to tempt your fate?" asked the Great Lady, somewhat surprised. "I would have thought you did that enough during your time fighting Naraku."

"I wish to tempt the _half-demon's_ Fate." Inukimi's gaze narrowed a little as she watched her son. Something was wrong with him, she could tell. The problem was telling what exactly that "something" was. Was his mind perhaps permanently changed after his encounter with the youkai Naraku? It had been three years since she had last seen her son, after all, and despite that time being rather short, a lot could happen in three years.

"A rather bold desire, don't you think?" she questioned him evenly, hoping to find some reasoning behind her son's sudden desire to tempt his luck, which had been thus far generally good. "But couldn't you simply kill the boy in his own home with your Bakusaiga? It's an excellent weapon from what I hear, is it not?"

"That Fate would not befit the death of my brother," Sesshomaru said smoothly. "He is both unworthy of my blade, and infinitely worthier of something greater than it than any of my other enemies."

" _Enemies_? You see this weak little hanyo as your enemy?"

"He may be a hanyo, but he is by no means weak," warned her son, looking away from her steady gaze. "His death is to come by my hand and no other."

"I see." She _didn't_ , really. While she held no love for the half-breed, he had done no real damage that she could see warranted death. "And how is he both unworthy and infinitely more worthy of death by your Bakusaiga?"

Sesshomaru looked away once again. "The blade offers no chance for my brother to fight back. His death would be both guaranteed and instantaneous. While I have no love for my brother, such a death is not becoming. He is of my father's blood, after all. Killing him so easily would be an insult to my father's memory, as would the half-breed's continued existence."

"He has so far aged as a mortal would, hasn't he?" Inukimi asked after a moment.

"And?"

"Does that not mean that the boy would be dead of natural causes within the century anyway? What is the point of killing something with such a short lifespan?"

"His death will be by my hand. It is his Fate, as is mine."

The great lady hummed a little bit, arching one delicate eyebrow, but saying nothing. Her feeling of foreboding only grew the more her son spoke. The way he talked about fate concerned her especially. Never before had the Inu Daiyoukai heard her son speak of fate as much as in this very conversation. And while, in the past twenty years, she had heard heard her son swear to kill his half-demon half brother, never had she _truly_ expected it to happen. It was somewhat alarming. Disturbing. Like her son wasn't entirely himself, or he wasn't _there_.

"Mother, what do you know of the Inukami?"

Inukimi regarded her son for a long time, taking in his appearance as she gathered her words. He didn't seem much different. He wore a different white kimono than the one from before, and his hair had been cut so that the ends were straight, but not much else had changed. Same soft-eyed brooding expression, same demonic markings, same stiff stance, same regal air about his being. So what was so different about her son?

"The Inukami-sama," she began to answer slowly, thoughtfully, "Is a god of great power, the most notable being, of course, the power over the interactions of living beings. With the blink of an eye, the Dog God can sever the destiny of a soul, create a new tie, cut the red string of fate and weave the very fabric of history. Being a merciful god, and loyal to the original Plan, the Inukami tends to avoid playing his hand too much in the proceedings of others - not that they would truly know, anyways, once their destinies are changed.

"I do believe, however, that you are more interested in the weapon left behind by the Inukami-sama, however, considering your goals," Inukimi continued levely, pausing to stare long and evenly at her regal-faced son. "Am I correct?"

His stony face told the Great Lady all she needed to know. Sighing, she leaned forward to her son, searching his eyes for answers as to why he so ardently desired such a thing. "Sesshomaru, why?"

"It is my Fate, as it is his."

"You speak of fate, but do you even understand _why_ , Sesshomaru?" Inukimi asked, her voice rising in passion. "Never in my life have I heard you speak of fate as much as in the past few minutes! Never _once_ have you spoken of the Great Dog God, and yet you now show an amount of interest in him that has _never_ been evident before! My son, what have you gotten into your head that you would _risk_ your own _life_ simply to kill a _boy_ and reclaim a pride that never existed?"

 _Silence_.

Long, cold, heavy silence, like a blanket of snow.

Something in Inukimi's resolve wavered. There was that strange and frightening _thing_ , glinting in her son's eyes. That thing which she couldn't quite place, couldn't quite understand. She just _couldn't understand it_ , like she couldn't understand her husband's affections for humans, how he could have stooped to such a level as to fall in love with a human woman. She thought she knew her son, though. This alien _thing_ , whatever it was, unsettled her far more than the Inu-no-Taisho's fascination with mortals.

"Jaken," Sesshomaru said at long last, his tone icy and strong. "We are leaving."

The little green demon had leapt to his feet, chattering non-stop sycophantic nonsense, when Inukimi reached her hand out to her only son. " _Wait_." Sesshomaru turned slowly, coldly, to face his mother. "The weapon... "

"What about it?"

"Sesshomaru, to _find_ the weapon would be a feat of legend. Your own father could never find it, and he spent the greater part of his youth searching for it."

"This Sesshomaru has no interest in finding it. I have only interest in using it."

The statement fought with itself on so many levels, but Inukimi simply swallowed. "The weapon is called the Kismet Blade. Its powers not only grant the wielder power over the destiny of those who are cut by it, but it can absorb the soul of that same person. It was originally created to save those whose lives had been cut short and _transpose_ them into a _new_ life, but it was since seized by evil beings who used it as a prison of souls. Those trapped inside may have become twisted, defiling the Kismet Blade itself. If one were now to attempt to use the blade, they would almost _certainly_ become corrupted, _possessed_ by the _blade itself_." She took a breath before adding in a lower, gentler, more desperate tone, "Sesshomaru, whatever you are planning, _do not use that blade_."

Sesshomaru gazed a long time at his mother, neither of them noticing the little green toad youkai jabbering away angrily at Inukimi, yammering on about how she was " _no master of the Lord Sesshomaru_ " and how she was " _ridiculous_ " for allowing the thought to cross her mind that Lord Sesshomaru would allow himself to become corrupted. When he at last opened his mouth to speak, the words were measured and cool, truly closing any future conversation. "I have no interest in finding the Kismet Blade. I am only interested in using it, for it is my Fate."

He turned abruptly away, his furs trailing off his shoulder flowing along behind him as he left his mother behind to sit weakly back on her dais, watching his back. The worst case scenario in her mind seemed to be the only correct one. The _thing_ that was off about her son. His lack of interest in finding the Kismet Blade, his desire to know what its purposes were.

Inukimi bowed her head and bit her lip, praying to the Great Dog God, the Inukami-sama, that her son was not already in possession of the Kismet Blade, hoping against all hope that he had not been corrupted by it.

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"Jaken," Sesshomaru said in a solemn voice full of authority and purpose. "Bring me the Blade."

"Oh of course, Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken sped forward through the trees, only noticeable by his scent, strong in Sesshomaru's nose. He returned a few moments later, toting a delicate looking blade with him, still sheathed, and emanating a strong, steady aura. He stopped a respectful distance from his lord and offered the blade, which was taken from his spindly fingers without any thanks. Not that Jaken had expected any. His assistance was repaid by being in such close service to the daiyoukai; a true honor, indeed.

The demon took ahold of the blade's handle and unsheathed it. A delicate blade was revealed, glowing a soft white, with a golden hilt embedded with white adamantite jewels. Veins of gold ran down the blade's glowing white metal, like reaching fingers. It was decorative, but not to the point of being ridiculous. It was, in fact, quite as utilitarian as it was beautiful.

"Such luck you were able to find such an amazing blade, my Lord," Jaken quipped, watching the blade himself. "This will be sure to bring honor to the death of your brother."

Sesshomaru did not answer, instead gazing intently at the blade, the words of his mother ringing in his mind. He could see her pleading expression in his mind's eye as she spoke. " _If one were now to attempt to use the blade, they would almost certainly become corrupted, possessed by the blade itself."_ A ridiculous notion, the young daiyoukai thought. He was far too powerful to allow himself to become possessed by a blade. Such was a thing only weak, lesser youkai were subject to.

Still… The look on his mother's face made him wary.

 _Perhaps_ mother knew best… Perhaps he _should_ be cautious. However...

"The Kismet Blade," he said vacantly, rather lost in his own thoughts as he stared unseeingly at the sword. "This is the sword with which I will end Inuyasha's life. _I_ am the master of this blade. _I am the master of our Fates._ "

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 _Glossary:_

Inukami-sama - literally "Dog God"

Daiyoukai - a powerful demon

Youkai - a demon or spirit

Hanyo - half-demon

Bakusaiga - Sesshomaru's sword

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 **A/N So... Yeah. There's that. I dunno anymore, sorry, hahah. Also, because I'm uncreative, Sesshomaru's mother's "name" is Inukimi. I read it somewhere that it was a fanon name, and I liked it, and I needed a placeholder, so it just... Stuck.**

 **OH WAIT NOTES: I've NEVER once thought that Inuyasha looked or acted like a 15 year old boy, especially in the anime. He looks waaay too old, so I've always headcanoned him as such. Around 18, actually. Oh, and I'm ignoring the movies (they're not canon anyway!), so no, our little hanyo friend is not 200 years old. Oh, and Sango and Miroku (yeah, they're gonna show up) are older too: around 20 and 23 by the time of this story. Again, they look and act older than 16 and 18 year olds. Plus, that just makes their team dynamic more fun, with Kagome being so much younger. LOL IDK**

 **Love yourselves, have fun, don't die, bYYEEEEE**

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 _Currently listening to: Love Don't Die - The Fray_


	3. Hungover Senses

**Chapter 3**

 _Hungover Senses_

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The dusty, packed-earth streets were silent, save for the morning breeze which persisted. The sun was only just above the horizon, the sky a deep blue with slate colored clouds dotting it here and there like a child's painting. Generally the first people to leave the comfort of their homes and head to the fields would have been long gone by now, but nobody had. Nobody _worked_ the day after a celebration, everyone knew that. A celebration ran late into the night, long after the children and some of the women went to sleep, brimming with sake and full bellies. No person in their right mind would leave to work in the fields until well into the day.

The same applied to hanyos. At one point during the night's festivities, Kagome had slipped away for some personal business, and when she returned she had found poor Inuyasha had been pressured into drinking some vile concoction a traveler had brought along with him, and was stumbling around and slurring every word.

"Kag'me!" he had cried at the sight of her, a lazy grin gracing his red face. "Where'd ya get to, huh? I jus' had th'best thing…" It wasn't the first time Kagome had dealt with him like this in all honesty. The Potion Master had unfortunately introduced her to this side of Inuyasha, and their arguments which followed were much the same: childish, lacking any bite, weak, and consisting of one repeated whine of, "I'm nahd _drunk_!"

There had been many cries of goodbye not soon after as she left, leading the intoxicated hanyo away with her.

She was sitting in the doorway of Kaede's hut at the moment, watching the trees and bushes with a rather vacant, unseeing, but content expression on her face. Every morning was a miracle when she realized that she was back in the Sengoku Jidai. It hurt - quite a bit, actually - to know that she would never see another skyscraper again, but she was here where she wanted, and every time she looked over at the sleeping form of a red-clad hanyo, her decision was only deeper affirmed in her heart.

She stood up from her silent vigil and tiptoed over to where her dog-eared companion lay, sitting down next to him and watching. Just watching. She didn't usually get the chance to; Inuyasha was always up with the sun and awake when she fell asleep. So now she just stared at his sleeping face, marveling at the change. His brow when he was awake was so often furrowed, his expression so brooding, the slack-jawed, quiet expression transformed him into a different person. Kagome could almost imagine him as a child, when his mother was still alive.

His nose twitched, and she bit her lip in a smile. He didn't know it, but his dog-like tendencies had been one of the things she had missed most about his. The twitchy ears that gave away his emotions, the little growls when he was angry or feeling threatened. And the newer things… The things that showed up for the first time really last night when she had forced him under a blanket and told him to sleep. The puppy dog eyes, the little noises, the touchy, feely pawings at her shirt sleeves.

There was a soft little groan. Kagome looked back at Inuyasha's face to see him squinting, his expression dull and mildly confused. "Hey," Kagome murmured, leaning over the dazed hanyo. "Good morning, dog boy. How are you?"

A dopey grin slowly grew on the half demon's lips the moment he saw her, eyes unfocused and half lidded. Obviously the effects of whatever he had been given had not work off entirely. "Hey," he murmured back, rubbing his neck. His voice was softer and lower than normal. "Not too good, actually. What happened?"

"Someone gave you something _questionable_ to drink last night," she said, brushing the white hair out of his face. "I had to bring you to Kaede-baa-chan's because you were pretty much tripping over your own feet."

"My head's killing me," he whined, shutting his eyes again. Kagome hummed in acknowledgement, and, hesitating a moment, decided to make the most of the situation, reaching up and running her fingers on his ears. "Stop that," he groaned.

"Move your head," she shot back, though not angrily by any means, rubbing the soft edges of his white ears between her fingers. She could feel every little nick and tear beneath the soft fur, the only consolation prize for a life spent alone and hunted. But he didn't move. In fact, he relaxed even further, allowing her to continue. She smiled at the happy little sigh.

Kaede's hut had two rooms: the entrance, where Inuyasha and Kagome sat, with the fire and the front door, and the second room were Kaede slept and where she stored the greater portion of herbs and such. The two rooms were separated by a screen, which was suddenly pushed aside as Kaede left her room and shuffled into the entrance. As always, she was short and hunched over, with her long sun bleached hair tied back and the sword guard over her right eye. Kagome always had the feeling that she once had been a very beautiful woman, like her late sister. She looked at Kagome and Inuyasha, not surprised at their presence. She was, after all, the miko of the village. It was her job to take care of those people who had nothing.

Behind her came a second, much younger person: Rin, a bubbly, intelligent girl of 11 by now, with choppy dark hair and bright eyes. For the longest time - until about when Naraku had been defeated, three years ago - Rin had traveled with Inuyasha's elder half brother, a full blooded Daiyoukai by the name of Sesshomaru. It was a surprising thing when considered, because generally, Sesshomaru, who was quite hostile to Inuyasha to say the least, did not like humans at all. But Rin was the exception, Kagome supposed. While she may not have known the specifics of Sesshomaru's affection for the girl, she knew that he cared for her deeply, and she him.

Rin laughed with delight and trotted over to Kagome and Inuyasha, hugging the former. "Good morning, Kagome," she trilled, flashing a sunny smile. Inuyasha's ears twitched violently at the noise, and he groaned. "What's wrong with Inuyasha?"

"He's not feeling too good at the moment," Kagome said dismissively, smoothing his red sleeve. "He had a little too much fun at the festival last night after you went to bed."

"Oh." The girl plopped herself down next to the fire, looking at Kaede. The old miko continued over to the other two before kneeling down herself, looking critically at the hanyo. Inuyasha sat up, leaning heavily on his hands planted firmly behind him, flat on the ground.

"Do ye know what ye drank?" she rasped sternly. While to Kagome she may have sounded kind and caring, to Inuyasha her tone was like she was always about to tell him off.

"Nope. No clue," answered the half demon, reaching up to scratch the back of his head.

"But ye feel okay?"

"Headache."

The old priestess nodded and looked to Kagome. "Ye may wish to take him to the river and wake him up," she said with a significant, one-eyed look. Kagome took the hint.

"That's a good idea," she said amicably, standing up and setting her hand on Inuyasha's shoulder. "Let's go."

"Go?" he asked, his brow furrowing. "Why?"

"We're gonna get you taken care of," Kagome answered smoothly.

"Man, what a pain. You women…" Despite his grumbling and complaining, he stood up and, with one of Kagome's hands gripping his upper arm, allowed himself to be led away. He was still a little tipsy, tottering beside Kagome with uneven steps and lurching to the side now and again without any warning. It was only her hand on his arm which kept him not only steady, but stopped him from accidentally barreling headfirst into a bush or front door.

The river wasn't very far from Kaede's hut or the edge of the village, perhaps half a mile away to the east, down in the valley. It was a strong little thing, winding its way purposefully through the trees and hills, silver in the reflected sunlight, but crisp and clear otherwise. Sitting herself beside the bank, Kagome dipped her feet into the cold water, her toes going numb as Inuyasha kneeled a few feet away, dipping his hand in and splashing his face.

"Feel good?" she asked, splashing her feet at him a little as he leaned over to reach the stream better. The water smacked him squarely in the face, and he spluttered.

" _Hey_!" He looked livid, though the sight really was funny: he was squinting through the water running down his face into his eyes, trying desperately to see her and glare. "What was _that_ for, _wench_?"

"Are you seriously incapable of taking a joke?" Kagome asked, her brow furrowing as she leaned back more comfortably on her hands.

"Of _course_ I can take a _joke_ ," grumbled Inuyasha, wiping his sopping hair out of his dripping face. The water ran down his chin into the neck of his robe. "I can't handle inhaling a lungful of water kicked in my face, though- _OI_!"

"Quit your whining!" Kagome kicked into the water once again, splashing the front of his robes this time. Incensed, he leapt to his feet, stance defensive and expression angry. The expression quickly changed into one of confusion, however, when he saw Kagome laughing, doubled over and snorting.

"Oh, so you wanna play like that, huh?" he growled, attempting an annoyed glower, but failing spectacularly. It didn't help everything was still a little blurry around the edges, his mind still a little fuzzy with alcohol - that drink had be potent as all hell. Had he been completely sober, he would have _never_ done this… _Maybe_. But he sped forward, scooped up Kagome, who squealed, and dumped her into the stream.

The beautiful thing about this revenge was that the stream was just deep enough in the middle to soak the girl to her waist. She gasped at the cold, still clutching at his robe and pulling him halfway over. It didn't help that he was busting a gut laughing now, doubled over with his hands gripping Kagome's wrists. His eyes were shut tight, so he didn't see her set her jaw, her eyes gaining a sudden mischievous glint, and he didn't expect to feel the sudden pressure on his back and shoulders, pulling him forward until it was too late to regain his balance. With an almighty _splash_ , he fell into the stream beside Kagome. He shot back up, gasping and spluttering with his hair in his face and Kagome's laughter in his ears.

" _Your face when you fell!_ " Kagome's voice was choppy and choked for air as she clutched at her sides. Growling, Inuyasha launched blindly at her, searching for her waterlogged scent more than anything, knocking her down into the water with him.

The two crawled back to the bank, laughing and collapsing on the dry grass. The sun was warm against their backs as their laughter subsided at last. They were very close, nearly touching. Kagome chuckled one more time, reaching up and running her thumb across Inuyasha's cheek. Her heart fluttered a little when he closed his eyes, taking a deep, slow breath.

He sat suddenly bolt upright.

"What? What is it?" Kagome pushed herself up as well, staring wide-eyed at the suddenly tense hanyo. He was sniffing the air, his eyes darting from side to side and ears swiveling here and there. He was searching for something. "Inuyasha?"

"I can smell Sesshomaru," he said tersely, a snarl growing on his lips. "Come on. Let's go see what he's doing here, the _bastard_."

Kagome stood and swiftly climbed onto Inuyasha's back, gripping the cloth on his shoulders tightly as he sprang forward, sprinting through the trees on the trail leading back to the village.

"How long's he been here?" she half-shouted to be heard. "Do you have any idea?"

"A while I think," grunted the half demon, taking another leap forward.

"Why couldn't you smell him before, then?"

"I just couldn't before. My head cleared up when you pulled me in the stream." The village came suddenly into view, a few people sitting in front of their homes with cups or bowls. It seemed peaceful and serene, but Inuyasha sped right past in his anxiety. Sesshomaru's scent was coming from…

" _Kagome_!"

A strange, round, pink _something_ appeared suddenly in front of the two, making Inuyasha come to a screeching halt with a shout, Kagome crying out, "Shippo-chan!" There was a loud _pop_ , and a little red-haired fox youkai kit appeared suddenly, falling to the ground and landing on his two little tawny fox feet as Inuyasha set Kagome down.

"Kagome!" Shippo cried, running and leaping into Kagome's arms, his green eyes wide. "Sesshomaru's here, and he-"

"I _know_ he's here," Inuyasha growled, reaching for Tetsusaiga hanging around his waist. "What's he _doin'_ here?"

"If you'd just _shut up_ I'd have _told_ you by now!" screeched the panicked kit, shaking an angry, tiny fist at the hanyo. Kagome shook him gently, attempting to grab his attention.

"Shippo," she said calmly, "What did Sesshomaru do? Why's he here?"

Before the kitsune had the chance to open his mouth, there was a happy shout, and a shadow passed over them. They looked up to see the regal form of Sesshomaru flying through the air, the little green toad youkai Jaken clutching to his flowing furs… And Rin grinning beside him.

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Youkai - a demon or sprit

Hanyo - a half demon

Sengoku Jidai - the Feudal Era

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; a priestess

Kaede-baa-chan - a term of endearment Kagome uses for Kaede, basically calling her "Granny Kaede"

Sake - sweet fermented rice; rice wine

* * *

 **A/N I've discovered that I don't trip over nothing like I've always believed (I trip a** ** _lot_** **over nothing). I'm actually tripping over my extremely low self confidence XD**

 **What the** ** _flip_** **did I just write? I think it's fanservice, because y'all seem to like freaking shippy stuff more than this, sooo... Let's see how this works? I mean, I'm a sucker for cute shippy things, but I was going to keep it rather contained for now until later chapters... Oh well.**

 **Soooo, happy late Halloween! And happy Inuvember! I'm gonna try to do this thing where you write something like 1700 words a day. I think I'm off to a good start so far, but if my Inktober schedule is any example, it probably won't happen, hahah.**

 **Okei, have fun, don't die, love yourselves, and please review, bYYYEEEE!**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: 2 Heads - Coleman Hell_


	4. Ancient Nulling Stone

Chapter 4

Ancient Nulling Stone

* * *

There was something nostalgic, and yet completely new and thrilling about the road they took. It had been three years since they had last taken a journey together, one goal in mind, like some odd group going on a quest… Which, in a sense, they were. Kagome looked around excitedly, steeling her heart for the journey ahead.

"It's been a while since our last journey, hasn't it?" asked the handsome young man walking a little behind her. She turned around and grinned, nodding. Miroku had hardly changed a bit in that time appearance wise. He had the same dark hair, the same playful dark eyes, he even wore the same purple robes, though with the addition of steel armguards. The biggest difference about him honestly was simply that he had grown far more mature - a change helped along no doubt by three children and his wife.

Beside him walked said wife, her face serene. Sango had barely changed either, her eyes perhaps a little puffy from tiredness, but her face still as beautiful as ever. Her hair was tied back loosely with a piece of twine, and her great bone boomerang, Hiraikotsu, was slung over her shoulder. On Miroku's back was a tiny infant boy - his son - wrapped in a cloth, tied around his own shoulders.

Kagome had been worried about bringing the boy, and not without reason. He was only a few weeks old at this point. Both she and Miroku had tried convincing Sango to stay behind to take care of the baby and her two twin daughters, but she had been adamant about going. Once she made up her mind, there was no convincing her otherwise. So while the two girls could be left with Kaede, the baby would have to go with Sango. She was perfectly at her ease with the child accompanying them, and so the matter was dropped. If worst came to worst, Shippo (who was sitting on Kagome's shoulder) could run and hide with the child.

"Keh!" Inuyasha scoffed from beside Kagome. His arms were folded into his sleeves, and he walked with a scowl on his face. "You say that like fighting Naraku was a fun thing."

"May I remind you that we wouldn't have met otherwise?" Miroku asked, raising a dark eyebrow himself and chuckling. "You would probably be sitting in a tree feeling miserable and pining after a dead woman."

"As if!"

"And with no Tetsusaiga, either."

"Shaddup!"

"You're such an idiot, Inuyasha," Shippo sighed, squealing when a clawed fist came crashing down on the top of his head.

Kagome rolled her eyes and sighed. Same argumentative Inuyasha, she thought. Things really haven't changed. She pulled a little at the neck of her kimono; since having returned, she had begun wearing the traditional red and white miko garb, and while they were much easier to move around in, they were somewhat uncomfortably warm, especially in the full sun.

She gave a sidelong glance at Inuyasha. His eyes were closed, a nerve going in his brow. She giggled, and his eyes flashed in her direction. "What are you laughing at?" he growled.

"Nothing," Kagome answered. Her all too cheery tone and expression did nothing to quell his suspicion as she adjusted the bow and quiver slung over her back. "Anyway we should be focused on the mission at hand."

"I wonder why Kaede wants us to go find Rin? It's not like Sesshomaru's going to hurt her. Not to mention she just loves him." Kagome nodded at the little fox demon's words.

It had not been ten hours since Rin had disappeared with Sesshomaru that morning. Kaede had approached the quickly gathered Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku - Shippo tagged along with the two former - with the plea for help recovering the girl. "Kaede said that it wasn't quite time for Rin to leave the village yet," Kagome explained. "She said she wanted her to have a couple more years of practice living with humans before it would be the right time for her to leave."

"She's been living in the village for three years already, though," said Miroku, looking somewhat surprised. "She's almost a woman by now."

"Guess Kaede wants her to stick around a little longer," shrugged Sango, reaching over and wiggling her fingers in front of her cooing baby's face. "Probably wouldn't hurt her."

"Definitely wouldn't hurt her," grumbled Inuyasha. "I can't see why the kid likes Sesshomaru so much."

"Somebody still grumpy?" Kagome teased, threading her arm through his. The hanyo scoffed again, but his eyes softened an infinitesimal amount.

There was a friendly silence for several long minutes, filled only with their footsteps and the baby's cooings.

"I think we're going to have to stop for the day," Miroku said after about a quarter of an hour.

"The sun doesn't set for another half an hour or so, though," Inuyasha turned to his friend, somewhat annoyed. All throughout their adventures three years ago, the same thing had happened, where Inuyasha - being a half demon - simply couldn't understand that humans got tired faster than he did, and needed to sleep in safer places than trees.

"Sango has to feed Hirohito," Miroku said pointedly, bouncing the baby on his back so it giggled a little. "Not to mention we need to actually find a place to set up camp."

"I saw a cave a little ways back up the road!" Shippo said excitedly, raising a hand in the hair, his puffy tail quivering. "It was a little ways up a mountain not too far off the path. We could sleep there, right?"

"Good eyes, Shippo," Kagome praised the kit, who smirked, turning to Inuyasha with the smuggest expression he could muster. The hanyo suddenly wanted nothing more than to pound the little devil into the ground, but Kagome was gripping his arm too tightly to allow him to turn. So, he had to keep the fist to himself, settling for low, angry growls and the intense desire to make such a smug, self satisfied expression illegal.

So, the little group of five - plus a baby - turned around, Inuyasha grumbling with annoyance, and made their way back down the road.

The cave Shippo had seen was barely visible from the path, around half a mile into the woods. The inutachi cheerily (save for Inuyasha) clambered down the steep, grassy slope beside the road, hopping over and wading through the river. Inuyasha scooped up Kagome and leapt over the swift moving waters, Sango laying Hiraikotsu down across a few rocks in a makeshift bridge for her husband and newborn son. Inuyasha didn't set Kagome down, even after the sound of the creek had faded behind them, Sango and Miroku sharing knowing little glances and smirks at the way Kagome rested her head on the hanyo's shoulder, how Inuyasha held the young woman as close to his chest as he could, his lips trembling as he tried to resist smiling while Kagome talked gently to him about nothing in particular. It was quiet, and peaceful, their footsteps muffled by the forest floor.

The serenity of the mood was suddenly drained with Miroku's suddenly tense question, stopping before the inutachi with his stiff back facing them. "I can't sense anything."

"What?" Sango approached her husband, laying a hand on his elbow. "Miroku, what do you mean?"

The monk turned to Inuyasha, who abruptly set Kagome down, a deep crease appearing between his brows. "Inuyasha, I can't sense you…"

"How?" The half demon's clawed hand was hovering over his Tetsusaiga, his eyes darting back and forth between the trees.

"It's like… Your youki just disappeared, like… Like…" The monk turned around, his eyes wide. "It just disappeared like whenever we would approach the Infant."

"The Infant?" Kagome said faintly. "With the Fuyoheki? The Nulling Stone? I thought you sucked it up with your Kazanna years ago…"

"I can feel it too," Inuyasha said darkly, now gripping his sword hilt tightly, readying himself for a fight. "There's no mistaking it. I can't even feel my own demonic powers."

"But I thought there was only one Nulling Stone," Kagome pressed again, looking between her companions with concern. "That old rock youkai that got killed had it."

"We should find out where it is," Shippo piped up from by their feet.

"Yeah… I want to know if there's any demons sneaking up on us tonight," Inuyasha agreed. His eyes were glazed over as he stared before them. "And I got a feeling that I know where the Fuyoheki is…"

He began walking forward, leading the group at a brisk pace that had them all breathing heavily after a few minutes as they made their way up the steadily steepening slope of the mountain, still towards the cave that had been their original destination.

"Stop," Inuyasha said once they'd created a final hill, coming face to face with the cave. Unsheathing Tetsusaiga, he waved it about slowly a couple of times before slowly approaching the dark, gaping maw that was the cave entrance and jabbing it.

There was a deep rumbling which shook the ground beneath their feet. Something above the cave mouth flashed, and Kagome stifled a gasp at the jewel bright and rocky eyes that stared down at them. This was another mountain youkai, like Gakusanjin, who had been the owner of the Nulling Stone which had been taken by Naraku three years before. But the way the stone was weathered, the mass of rock and stone above and covering the giant demon, the old trees growing on the sides, the frighteningly knowing and sad gaze of the demon all said to Kagome that this rock youkai was much, much older than Gakusanjin had been. Thousands of years old at least, maybe even millions.

"Who are you?" came the voice from the very earth. The demon didn't move, only staring tiredly at the inutachi. "Come to take another treasure from an old youkai?"

"We came looking for a Nulling Stone," Miroku called, raising a hand to his mouth to better project his voice. "You wouldn't happen to have it, would you?"

"Aye," rumbled the voice. The eyes flashed from Miroku to Sango, then to Inuyasha and Shippo before coming to rest on Kagome. "You brought a miko. Do you plan to purify me? Because I will tell you now that the attempt would be pointless…"

"We have no plans on killing you," Kagome answered, raising her voice like Miroku. "We only came to make sure that there was no demon who would…" Her voice trailed off, biting her lip. She didn't want to suggest that the old mountain wasn't dangerous by calling other demons more of a threat to them perhaps even accidentally provoking him into a fight.

"You better stay away from them," Inuyasha spat out at last, holding Tetsusaiga threateningly, "Or I'll kill you. I've destroyed more powerful demons than you." Kagome groaned. Inuyasha was doing exactly that which she had hoped to avoid, only worse by being hostile himself. Much to the inutachi's surprise, however, there was another low rumbling from under their feet, like deep laughter. Laughter coming from the ancient rock youkai.

"I believe you, boy," answered the demon faintly. "I wouldn't be much of a fight, however. I am nearing the end of my life, after all. I have no reason to continue living after…"

The great demon fell suddenly silent. "After what?" Miroku questioned slowly.

"I… Had a great artifact stolen from within me…" continued the demon, the rumbling of his voice growing rather weaker. "I had been tasked with destroying the weapon many, many eons ago… But I was not strong enough to destroy it… So I swore upon my own life that I would seal the artifact away within my being until the end of time… But it was stolen from me. I have failed my mission."

"What weapon is this?" Sango asked, concern creeping into her voice. "Who took it?"

The youkai's voice was growing ever fainter as he answered, "There was a weapon left upon the earth by a great god… A sword with the power over souls, over Fate… The Kismet Blade."

"Who stole it?" Inuyasha asked once again. His own sword was held limply in his hand, all the fight going out of him as he had listened to the old rock.

"I do not know," said the youkai in almost a whisper. "I do not know, save he was a strong demon… Strong, with white hair - long, like yours, hanyo… And I heard him, as he flew away, that he swore he would use the Blade to kill his brother.

"I pity the poor soul who shares blood with that demon… I fear that he stands no chance against the Kismet Blade… His Fate is sealed..."

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Kazanaa - Miroku's wind tunnel

Youkai - a demon or spirit

Youki - demonic energy

Fuyoheki - a stone which masks demonic energy; a Nulling Stone

Hiraikotsu - Sango's bone boomerang

Tetsusaiga - Inuyasha's sword, meaning

Hanyo - a half demon

Inutachi - the gang of Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo, often translated to "Inuyasha and co." or "Inuyasha friends" in the manga

* * *

 **A/N This chapter's a little shorter, but it's got a lot of dialogue. Yes, I'm going to address the old rock youkai's willingness to give away information in future chapters (probably the next one). I hate writing dialogue... Hahahah.**

 **Are you guys who are reading this liking this at all? I don't know... Nobody gives me any feedback... I mean, even a "I hate this story, you suck as a writer" would be better than a lack of feedback but... Whatever I guess...**

 **(Whoever thought bringing a 2 week old baby on a dangerous quest was a good idea is an absolute GENIUS. Actually, i reasoned that since Sango was a Taijiya/Slayer, she was introduced to danger since childhood. And since she's such a strong warrior, she's not too worried about her baby. OH and I named the baby "Hirohito", which means, in essence, "Unknown". I thought it was fitting since we know literally NOTHING about Sango and Miroku's kids.)**

 **Uhh, yeah. Bye have fun don't die love yourselves lEAVE A FREAKING REVIEW OR SMTH XD IDK okei bye**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: Man With a Mission (Nanatsu no Taizai) - Nate Wants to Battle_


	5. Down the Well Again

**Chapter 5**

 _Down the Well Again_

* * *

"I don't like the sound of this Kismet Blade," said Miroku later that night. The inutachi was sitting in the warmth of the flickering firelight cast around the clearing, faces half hidden by the orange light. Both Miroku and Inuyasha were sitting with their backs against trees, arms folded and on edge. The group had left the range of the ancient mountain's Fuyoheki a couple hours before, preferring being able to sense their enemies approach to hoping that they wouldn't be accosted in the blind zone - while the Nulling Stone hid all traces of demonic energy, there was no guarantee that it would mask Kagome's spiritual powers, or that a demon would catch them while they were distracted: off guard and unprepared.

Sango nodded in agreement, sitting in front of the fire beside Kagome and rocking Hirohito. "I don't either. Something that can change a person's fate is something that should only belong in the hands of the gods."

"I'm more worried about this demon who _stole_ this sword," Inuyasha said darkly, his eyes never leaving the crackling flames. "I know that old demon said something about him planning to use the Blade, but why would he want _that_ sword? Who the heck is powerful enough to wield a blade that controls fate?"

"Well, who do we know who has a brother and hates his guts?" Shippo chimed in, raising an eyebrow at the hanyo.

"Kinka and Ginka hated each other's guts," Inuyasha answered the little kitsune with a noncommittal shrug. "It's not a crazy thing, to want to kill your brother, at least not when you're a demon."

"This is true. I mean, just look at you," Kagome said half-jokingly. Inuyasha's ears twitched, and he turned his head to face the girl, obviously confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked with something like apprehension.

"You and Sesshomaru, I meant," Kagome clarified, waving her hand. "He's always going on about how he's going to be the one to kill you one day, right?"

"True," Miroku sighed, lowering his head a few inches. "But Sesshomaru has saved Inuyasha's life several times even since swearing to kill him. I don't know about the rest of you, but I think that Sesshomaru cares for Inuyasha more than he'd ever admit."

"Well then, you're blind as a bat," Inuyasha grumbled, scowling once again. "Sesshomaru doesn't give a crap about whether I live or die."

"You really are dense, you know that Inuyasha?" Sango said lightly, running her thumb along Hirohito's smooth cheek.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The hanyo leapt to his feet with the shout, raising his fists in indignance. Kagome sighed, knowing exactly what her friend had meant. After all, she was right; Inuyasha had never been one to understand feelings very well - a flaw most obviously displayed in the past when concerning Kagome as well as Sesshomaru, and on his own part as well. Sango gave a friendly smile to the bristling half-demon, and without getting an answer, he returned to his sitting position, though far more tense than before.

"Know what?" Miroku said after a few moment of only crackling flame. "What if it _was_ Sesshomaru who took the Blade?"

"I wouldn't _doubt_ it," grouched the hanyo, obviously still annoyed by Sango's previous comment.

"I do," Kagome commented placidly, running her finger along the broad side of the sharp metallic edge of one of her arrows without really noticing.

" _Keh_!"

The inutachi fell into another long, uncomfortable silence. After a while, Shippo crawled across the small clearing to Kagome, curling up beside her and resting his head in her lap. Sango made her way over to her husband, leaning against his chest and holding her baby. Miroku, who was holding his shakujo against his shoulder with one arm, wrapped his free arm around her shoulders, resting his head on the top of hers. Kagome watched the two with a strange, tense feeling in her gut. Their marriage, their relationship, made her so, so happy, and yet… She glanced at Inuyasha, who was staring into the darkness, golden-eyed and brooding, and felt the back of her neck warming.

She looked away, then coughed. The entire group looked at her. "Well," she said, rahter quietly. "I guess we don't know anything about this Blade then."

"Right," agreed the monk.

"So how should we figure out what we're up against?"

"Wait wait wait, time out." Inuyasha looked at the young woman with another confused expression on his face. "I thought the _whole_ reason we came out here was to find _Rin_."

"Well, it's not like we have any leads on where Sesshomaru is," Miroku pointed out. "Nobody's seen him in any of the villages we've passed, and you can't smell him anywhere. Plus it's not like we can ignore the problem of the Kismet Blade. So why not go after the Blade while we wait for some information about Rin?"

The inu hanyo obviously couldn't think of any counter argument, and clenched his fists with an irritated grimace.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked quietly. He turned to her with a glare that she knew was not meant for her. She motioned for him to come to her, waving her hand to him. After a long, conflicted moment, he complied, sitting heavily down beside her so that they were almost touching. His posture was tense, but she shifted so they were right up against one another, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry we're not going after Rin, and I'm worried about her too. But this Kismet Blade is a problem, and we have to stop it before it begins causing trouble. Rin will be okay. Sesshomaru loves her like a daughter."

From beside her, Inuyasha squirmed uncomfortably. She couldn't tell exactly why, whether it was from her words or from her contact. She moved her head, fearing the later, and he looked at her with mild confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Huh?"

"I thought you were…" He looked away again, shrinking in on himself and looking somewhat upset. His ears lowered an inch or so. "Nevermind."

Kagome didn't miss the way his ears pricked back up when she leaned her head back on his shoulder.

"Well, if we're going after this Blade, who are we going to get information from?" Sango continued, rather belatedly. "I don't think that old demon's going to tell us anything else about it. I'm surprised he told us about the Blade to begin with."

"Hah. Obviously you guys don't get what it's like to be a demon," Inuyasha said, settling more comfortably against Kagome at his side and the tree against his back.

"Well then, please elaborate," Miroku grinned at his younger friend, who glared at him.

"The old guy's lost any reason to keep living," he huffed, looking away. "He's got no reason to go on. No resistance. So if the reason to live's gone, what's the harm in talking about it to people who can't do anything about it?"

"Do you not think we're going to be able to find the Blade?" Kagome asked, looking up at the hanyo with surprise. It wasn't like him to be such a pessimist in the face of danger.

"I never said that," he grumbled. "I'm just saying that's how the _demon_ was thinking. He doesn't know we defeated Naraku, does he? He doesn't know how powerful we are."

"I guess that makes sense..."

"Of _course_ it makes sense," said Inuyasha with another frown. "It makes sense if you're a _demon_."

"Well I think we need to talk to Kaede," Shippo piped up from under Kagome's hand. "She should know about this sword. She's wise."

"I think so too," Miroku agreed, pulling Sango closer to him and closing his eyes. "Any objections to going to Lady Kaede?" Kagome, Inuyasha, and Sango all shook their heads with noises of dissent. "Then it's settled. We'll go talk to Kaede-sama tomorrow."

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The journey back to the village seemed to take an eternity longer than it had leaving it. Kagome always thought that was because since they had already seen all of the scenery once on their way, it was rather more boring seeing it again. Then again, maybe it was simply because their way back was preceded by a night out in the open, and they were walking along the road pale faced and tousle haired.

It wasn't as though Kagome had been uncomfortable: Inuyasha had lain behind her, shielding her from the breeze, and allowed her use of his arm as a sort of pillow, and Shippo had crawled in her arms, where he sat warm and small. But Hirohito had woken them all up more than once, and, again, they were out in the open. While Inuyasha was ever vigilant with his dog-like senses, and most of them could all sense demonic auras, it didn't stop them from being wary.

Kagome could still remember one of their earlier nights out in the open, when the inutachi had still been little more than a band of teenagers and young adults, untrusting of each other as much as strangers. It was dark - _nothing special there_ , Kagome thought with a wry smile: night usually _was_ dark - and they had been exhausted after a day of walking and fighting some odd demon or another. They were sitting around the fire, eating and making awkward small talk, like "that demon was really something, wasn't he?", "more rice?", "I think it's about three hours to midnight", "what is that strange scroll, Kagome?", "it's called a book", et cetera.

That was the point where Shippo had stepped on Kirara's tail on his way to get more rice from Kagome, and the entire young, naive, frightened inutachi who had no idea what hardships and evils they were about to go through together only to grow into a family, had their first ever memory to reminisce upon together and laugh about as they watched the demon cat chasing the little screaming fox demon kit around the fire, leaping on rocks or the laps of those sitting around that fire.

Kagome smiled.

They'd come so far since then.

The village finally came into view in the valley below them after several hours of walking, and they all breathed a sigh of relief. There were people working the rice paddies and in the fields. There were children running up and down the streets. There were chickens wandering around the houses. No demons had attacked, no Sesshomaru had gone on a kidnapping spree, no nothing had happened, and the group knew a _lot_ could happen in the space of a day. A lot _had_ happened in the space of a day.

However, when the group had found Kaede - and were hounded by her intense questioning as to why they had not found Rin, and why they had come back - they were dismayed at her knowledge of the Kismet Blade they suddenly wanted so badly to find. Or rather, they were dismayed by her _lack_ of knowledge.

"I've never heard of such a weapon," she said seriously, giving them all a worried, one-eyed glare. "A blade with can sever the fate of a being? Such a thing should belong only in the hands of the gods, never in those of mortals."

"That's what we said," Kagome said, frowning. "But the Blade is here and it's in the hands of somebody violent. Are you sure you've never, _ever_ heard anything about it?"

She hadn't.

So now, the inutachi sat dejectedly by the Goshinboku (minus Sango, who had gone home to take care of her kids), brooding.

"It's not like we can just ignore the Blade," Miroku said for what had to be the tenth time in the past hour.

"We _know_ , monk," Inuyasha growled through gritted teeth. The uneasy atmosphere had put him on edge since last night, and the repetitive, circular talks weren't helping his mood. He needed to know what to _cut_ , not what to avoid saying. "But who on earth would we know - _besides_ Kaede, who obviously _doesn't_ know - who has any idea what the Kismet Blade even is? If that demon's not wrong, the Blade's been hidden inside him for generations. _Centuries_. There's going to be nobody alive who knows anything about it."

"Jii-chan…" Kagome's voice was hoarse as she uttered the name. Inuyasha and Miroku turned to look at her. Shippo actually turned around to stare at her from where he sat, toying with a frog that had so unwisely hopped across their path. They all looked alarmed.

"Your grandpa?" Inuyasha asked. "But he's in the future, isn't he? You'd have to go through the Well, and that's sealed..."

"We don't know that." Kagome gazed intently into the hanyo's eyes rather sadly.

" _No_!"

Inuyasha's hands shot forward so fast, Kagome jumped when she felt his clawed fingers circle rather painfully around her upper arms. His face had paled and his expression was suddenly… Terrified. "You're not going back there."

"Why not, Inuyasha?" Kagome sighed, reaching up and grabbing the half-demon's arms for herself. "My grandpa is the person most likely to know something about this sword. I have to try."

"You can't! I won't let you!"

"Why? You can't tell me what to do! Why can't I try?"

"I... You just _can't,_ Kagome! I won't let you."

"Let me _go_ , Inuyasha!"

"No!"

" _Osuwari_!"

Shippo and Miroku, who had been watching the tussle between the young woman and the half-demon with something like fascination, jumped as the long since forgotten command sent the half-demon's face crashing into the ground, a rather unbecoming shriek escaping his lips. Obviously Inuyasha had forgotten all about Kagome's power over the Beads of Subjugation as much as they had. Kagome leapt to her feet, looking as though she were about the break into tears as she half screamed at him.

"It's not up to you whether I can try the Well! If this sword really can end fates like that demon says, this is something I've got to try! _Why are you trying to stop me_!"

"I can't let you!" Inuyasha shouted back at her, pushing himself back up as the power of the Beads lessened.

" _Osuwari_!" His face slammed into the earth once again. "You are not my boss! You can't stop me!"

"Kah… Go...Me!" Out of sheer power of will, out of the terror that was sending adrenaline rushing through his blood, Inuyasha pushed himself up, arms shaking underneath his body as he fought against the full power of the Beads of Subjugation. With a superhuman effort, he reached forward and grasped the hem of Kagome's hakama as she began to move away. Her face, which was furious and teary-eyed only a moment before, fell as she looked back at his shaking ams and back, his ears pressed flat against his skull and face hidden. It sounded like he was choking for air as he struggled for words. "I can't… I can't…"

The power of the Beads finally stopped, but Inuyasha did not move from his place. His back did not stop shaking. Scared, Kagome kneeled slowly beside him. "Inu… Yasha?"

"Take me with you…" he whispered hoarsely, still not looking up. "Please… I'd rather… I'd rather be stuck there than… Than…"

His voice cracked, and he stopped talking, his head sinking lower. Kneeling back down into the grass, Kagome cupped either side of his face in her hands, but didn't force him to look up. If she wasn't wrong, she could have sworn something wet touched one of her fingers. She had only one more question for him as he hesitantly lifted his clawed hands to hold hers more securely against his face. "...Why?"

There was several long seconds of silence before the hanyo said in a crackly whisper, "I can't… I just can't… Lose you again… Not again…"

"Oh Inuyasha." Kagome chuckled humorlessly, pulling the young man into an embrace and holding him close to her chest, never once looking into his face and petting his long white hair comfortingly. He wrapped his arms around her a moment after.

There was a soft cough, and Kagome looked up. Miroku and Shippo were staring at them like fish, mouths agape and eyes wide. Had this been any other time, Kagome would have been somewhat embarrassed, but she didn't care enough to do much more than hold the inu hanyo breathing shakily against her.

"Well…" Miroku said, rather uncertainly and awkwardly. "Well… I guess this means… You two are going to try the Bone Eater's Well, then?"

"Yes," Kagome said simply, kissing the top of Inuyasha's head in a dazed sort of way. His ears twitched.

It didn't take more than 10 or so minutes for the two to gather themselves, and for the little group to make their way nervously to the Bone Eater's Well, 50 feet away from the foot of Goshinboku, standing tensely on the wooden edge of the Well.

"Well," Miroku said thickly, swallowing. "This might be goodbye then."

"It might," Kagome agreed, looking ruefully at the monk. "But I hope it's not. If we make it through, I don't think it will be."

"I'll tell the others where you two have gone if you make it," the monk tried to smile. It felt alien and uncertain on his face. Shippo burst into tears and flung himself at Kagome, blubbering unintelligibly. The girl hugged the little kit with a teary-eyed smile of her own.

"We'll be back," she said at last after a few long moments where she did nothing but open and close her mouth. "I love you guys."

But both Miroku and Shippo knew that Kagome's love for them - for Sango, and Kaede, and Rin, and Sango and Miroku's children - could barely be compared to the love they all knew the hanyo gripping her hand tightly held for her.

A breath, hardly more than a few heartbeats, and...

They leapt.

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Fuyoheki - a stone which masks demonic powers/youki; a Nulling Stone

Inutachi - the group consisting of Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo. Often translated as "Inuyasha and co." in the manga,

Osuwari - the sit command given specifically to a dog. Often translated to "sit, boy" in the English dub

Kitsune - a fox demon/youkai

Youkai - a demon/spirit

Youki - demonic power

Hanyo - a half demon

Goshinboku - the Sacred Tree

Jii-chan - a term of endearment Kagome uses for her grandfather, typically translated to "gramps"

* * *

 **A/N Sorry this is a long chapter, hahah. It's like two pages longer, and it sounds like crap while I'm reading it, but it's 10:30 at night and I've been working all day, so maybe I'll fix** **it later, hahahah XD**

 **I actually almost forgot all about the "Osuwari" command, hahah.**

 **Too tired to think of anything clever to say here, I guess, so have fun, don't die, love yourselves, leave a review, byYYYEEEE**

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 _Currently listening to: Make It Up - Sam Tsui_


	6. I Swear

**Chapter 6**

 _I Swear_

* * *

Rin swore that she would spend the rest of her days by her Lord Sesshomaru's side.

The decision was, perhaps, not one that should have been made by the adolescent, admiring, naive mind of an eleven year old girl, but it was what she wanted at the time. And as Rin had no other objections - or indeed, anyone to object - that was what was decided.

The field she currently was dancing through was filled with yellow flowers, dotted with the red heads of morning glories as the danced along with her in the breeze. Sesshomaru walked dutifully in front of the little procession, followed by Rin as she pranced about, and then the little shriveled green toad demon Jaken, who was grumbling about something or another. Most likely Rin and her child-like tendencies. It wasn't like she could help it. She was just so happy to be back with her Lord Sesshomaru, and it wasn't as though Jaken-sama could understand what a joy it was to be there. He was there all the time!

" _Jaken-sama, Jaken-sama, why are you so green?"_ she sang, her arms swinging by her sides as she skipped, one hand holding a bunch of the yellow wildflowers.

"It's not like I can help it! Be quiet, you insolent child!" The suddenly indignant youkai waved his ridiculously tall staff at her, attempting to seem threatening though failing. In all of their time together, and their time away, he just could not seem to scare the human girl, try as he might.

She was fearless.

That was the best way to describe Rin. Fearless and innocent. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why Sesshomaru was so fond of the little mortal, Jaken mused, glowering at her slightly heightened frame weaving here and there, her dark hair flashing in the sunlight. He was unaware of the circumstances surrounding their meeting - and he wasn't one to press for answers, either - but she was one of the few who didn't fear him, cower in his shadow.

The frown deepened so that to the normal person, it would look like the most ridiculous pout. But the idea that Rin didn't fear their Lord Sesshomaru was simply blasphemy! Irreverent! Sacrilege! It was supposed to be that all who looked upon their lord would cower in fear and awe of his power! But not with Rin. Rin was something else.

Giggling, she made her way to the side of the road and made to pick another bunch of flowers. She had seen the purple head of a chrysanthemum - something new and rare so far in the meadow - and was about to pick it when, with an thunderous roar, a great, dirty rodent youkai erupted from the earth, yellowed teeth flashing and claws thrashing. Rin fell backwards with a scream, her flowers flying from her grip as she landed flat on her back. The air was knocked from her lungs. Though she wanted to with all her might, as the repulsive rodent demon flailed in the air and caught her in its red-eyed and furious glare, she could not call out.

She couldn't call to Sesshomaru-sama.

She shut her eyes, afraid for her life.

But she needn't be, it turned out. Sesshomaru came for her anyway. With a flash, his claws swung through the air, knocking the lesser demon back. Jaken was screaming insults at it as it landed, sporting four long gashes in its flesh. The daiyoukai approached, regal and cool as ever, and Rin watched him with a shiver.

And then she saw the others. There were three other youkai who had crawled out of the hole the first demon had emerged from, looking like smaller, younger versions of the rodent. They looked like… Like _children_.

"Sesshomaru-sama," Rin coughed, struggling to push herself up. Something was wrong. Something was wrong with the air. She couldn't explain it, but something felt _off_ , and her lord seemed to be the cause, with his cool attitude as he stepped purposefully towards the demon. The little demons all scampered towards the larger, surrounding it as it grunted at them with what sounded like fear. Somehow, Rin could almost tell that it was telling them " _run, run, run away_ ". And that scared her.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" she called again, this time louder. But the inuyoukai did not turn to face her, instead resting his hand upon the hilt of a sword she had never seen before, and unsheathed it. It was glowing a bluish-white, and the blade itself was a thin, delicate looking thing, as beautiful as the hilt was, held in the hand of Sesshomaru. But Rin's appreciation of the beauty of the thing was suddenly pushed away by her fear of it. She wasn't just scared of how her lord held it. She was scared of _it_. She was scared suddenly of the blade.

"Sesshomaru-sama!" she shouted once again. The little demons looked at her once with fearful eyes before speeding away, looking back over their shoulders and burrowing back into the earth.

"Quiet, brat!" Jaken snapped, his greedy little eyes never once leaving the daiyoukai. "Lord Sesshomaru knows what he's doing."

"But he's going to-"

She never got the chance to finish what she was going to say. The words had died on her tongue with the rodent. Arcing the sword, that terrible, beautiful sword, in a vicious downswing, the yellow flowers were dyed red. Blood red. She gasped, her hands flying to her mouth and eyes bugging with horror, and the body of the huge rodent youkai fell to the ground with a rattling gasp and a thud.

As if that weren't enough, something that glowed was slowly rising from its now still form, floating for a few moments that felt like eternities, fighting some invisible force, trying to escape, before being pulled into the sword. It was absorbed, and the blade glowed with a new fervor before dimming and returning to its sheathe. Sesshomaru turned to face his subordinates once more. His eyes…

Rin couldn't help her heart's sudden fluttering. His eyes were hard, cold, like stones. Amber stones. For a moment, she couldn't see the thing in his eyes that she loved so, the warmth that hid beneath the frigid exterior. Oh, it returned after a moment, the chilling hardness leaving those golden depths as he saw her whole and unscathed, but it had been gone.

"Come," he said after a moment, turning his back to them in a command for them to climb onto his trailing furs. Jaken immediately pushed past Rin to climb onto the furry mass, and Rin certainly followed, but she did so only after hesitating for only a moment. _Never_ had she hesitated before. And as they flew into the air, she closed her eyes, burying her face into the furs and still in shock.

 _I swear I will spend the rest of my days by Sesshomaru-sama's side,_ she thought, reaffirming the wish in her mind. I want to be with him. _I want to follow him until I die._

But in her heart, she simply could not repress the fear she suddenly held for her soul. There was something wrong with her beloved Lord Sesshomaru, and she had the nagging, gnawing suspicion it had everything to do with that delicate, beautiful blade hanging at his waist, still red with blood.

Below her, the yellow field of wildflowers seemed to be dotted with more red than it had before.

* * *

 _Glossary_

Youkai - a demon or spirit

Daiyoukai - a great and powerful demon/youkai

-sama - a term added to the end of a name for respect

* * *

 **A/N And THIS is a SHORT chapter. I didn't really want to write it, actually, it just wasn't turning out how I wanted it. I wrote parts of it like 3 times, too. So, ya'll get this piece of crap, and I apologize (granted, the whole story's crap, but that's not what we're counting right now, hahah). But NOW we get to the FUN stuff ya'll've been waiting for XD And it'll be a long chapter, too, huehuehuehuehuehuehue.**

 **The thing Rin was singing is actually from one of the episodes. Granted, I think it's only in the sub, but I loved it so much I had to include it. I actually only really watch the sub, SO Kagome's name is pronounced correctly too! It's "KAH- goh- may", NOT "kah - GOH - may"! I will always be a firm believer that you should pronounce foreign words and names in the original language's pronunciation, not like a freaking gringo, hahah XD**

 **Yesterday some random chick grabbed my hair while I was selling pomegranates and said "Hey you have beautiful hair". Yeah, I was more than a little weirded out, but hey, she was old, so I'll let it slide.**

 **Ehhh, have fun, don't die, love yourselves, leave a reVIEW, bYYYYYE loz**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: Smile - Mikky Ekko_


	7. They Knew He Loved Her

**Chapter 7**

 _They Knew He Loved Her_

* * *

She couldn't see anything. Honestly, she didn't want to see anything, instead burying her face in the heavy-woven red cloth covering his chest rather than facing the truth that she would inevitably have to look at. But she didn't want to see the truth. Not yet. She was too scared.

She could tell Inuyasha was scared could tell his was holding his breath, and he had wrapped his arms around her just as she had when they had jumped, holding her so tight it was as though he were afraid that she would suddenly evaporate into thin air. Which he did.

It was as though the forces of the universe were staring them down as they kneeled in the dirt at the bottom of the Bone Eater's Well, daring them to look up and see. Which, after a few long, paralyzed, moments that lasted eternities, they did.

Kagome was glad she was already kneeling in the dirt and held tightly in Inuyasha's arms, because if she had been standing, she would have fainted with relief, tears filling her eyes. Instead of deep blue sky over her head, there were dark, dusty wooden rafters. Feeling her grip suddenly slacken, Inuyasha opened his eyes, which had been shut tight, and gazed at Kagome. There were tears suddenly tracing down her cheeks, but also a wide, toothy smile as she looked back at him. He let go of the breath he had held, inhaling the stuffy, metallic, dusty scent of the future to which he did not belong, and had not seen in three years.

Despite himself, a little smile crossed his own lips as he gazed upward, both of them lost for words. A lump of emotion prevented Kagome from speaking, so she simply settled back into the hanyo's arms, hugging him around his chest harder than before. It took them a few moments of shocked silence, but eventually Inuyasha lifted Kagome into his arms and leapt the ten feet upwards and over the side of the Well before setting her down on her feet.

It was an eerily familiar feeling as the couple slid open the doors at looked out onto the courtyard, more so than it had been to travel down that road only the day before with their friends. If felt as though Kagome was once again a frightened, confused, excited and immature child, hopelessly in love with a man who she would constantly fight with and most worried about passing her next test. The very act of opening that door had brought back all the pale, uncertain memories of their year searching for Naraku. It was the feeling of being a fifteen year old girl again.

The Goshinboku stood tall and strong a little ways away, in the same place it would be 500 years in the past, but besides its position and the Well, nothing was the same. There was no green grass, no clear air, no Shippo or Miroku. This was Kagome's world, full of its futuristic oddities and strange, bitter smells and harsh noises that drowned out the twittering of the birds despite being high above the road.

The two made their way hesitantly to the two story house a little ways away, walking perhaps a little closer than was necessary in their dreamy frames of mind, and paused uncertainly at the front door. Kagome lifted her hand to open it, and paused for a fraction of a second. How weird it was to be doing something as simple as opening her own front door! Though, when one last closes that same door believing it to be the last time, only to be proven wrong only a week later, Kagome supposed it wasn't altogether so surprising that her hand shook and she was holding her breath. She opened the door and knocked three times on the frame. The two were immediately hit with the aroma of baking cookies and freshly mopped floors.

"Who is it?" came a familiar, yet unseen voice from the kitchen. The lump of emotions in Kagome's throat had returned full force, preventing her from speaking. There were footsteps, and around the corner came into view Kagome's mother.

The three stood there for a moment, merely looking at each other, disbelieving the sight that greeted any of their eyes. With a clatter, the cookie-dough spoon Mrs. Higurashi held in her hand fell to the floor as she staggered for a moment before making her way slowly towards the last two people she had expected to appear on her threshold. She stopped just a foot away from her daughter, her wide eyes never leaving her beaming face, and without warning, threw her arms around the girl. The two laughed, utterly lost for words, swaying with tears in their eyes. Letting go of Kagome, Mrs. Higurashi cupped her daughter's cheek with a watery laugh, and then turned to face Inuyasha.

He had hardly changed in their three years apart. He still had the same pretty amber eyes, framed by those same thick, dark lashes, the same long white hair, the same little dog ears - presently pricked forward as she wrapped her arms around him as well. Awkwardly, he patted her back before, looking to Kagome, who gave him a warm smile, he returned the embrace. This may have been Kagome's home, but he hadn't forgotten that it could be his too.

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The heartfelt reunion between mother and daughter had quickly dissolved into tears within minutes. Souta, Kagome's little brother, ran down from his room not too soon after to join in the salty cry-fest, clutching his sister desperately and laughing through tears of his own. Inuyasha was struck by how much older the boy looked as he hugged him as well. The couple were rushed into the kitchen and sat down at the table, where Mrs. Higurashi immediately presented them with a plate of still-warm cookies. Kagome watched Inuyasha munching on one with a distant grin, remembering that the first time they had given him chocolate chip cookies they had been rather apprehensive, wondering how his canine heritage would react to the chocolate. Their worries had been wasted, however, as they watched the hanyo inhale another two dozen, at least, and all without any repercussions to the sugary treat. The cookies now were disappearing at a similar rate as that first time.

It took a while, but Kagome and Inuyasha managed to fill Souta and Mrs. Higurashi in on what had happened in their week apart: Sesshomaru kidnapping Rin, their single day's journey to find her, the discovery of the Kismet Blade. Kagome and her mother seemed to enjoy talking about Inuyasha in his drunken state a little more than was strictly necessary, giggling behind their hands and casting him mirthful looks.

"And what about this Kismet Blade?" Mrs. Higurashi asked after a little more idle chit-chat (and several more cookies). "You did say that was why you decided to jump back into the Well, yes?"

"Yeah," Kagome affirmed, nodding. Her smile slipped from her face as she looked more intently at her mother. "Gramps is okay, right? He isn't here…"

"Oh, Jii-chan is fine, dear," Mrs. Higurashi said airily, waving her hand with an easy smile. "He's just in town right now, at a doctor's appointment. He won't be back until about six this evening, though."

"This evening?" Inuyasha said, surprisingly clearly for a guy who's mouth was stuffed full of half-chewed baked goods. He swallowed and looked at Kagome's mother in alarm before helping himself to yet another cookie. "It's only morning!"

"It's almost noon," Kagome corrected him, patting his arm patiently. Her mother watched the action with interest, her eyes narrowing and a mischievous glint suddenly shining. Souta noticed the change and looked apprehensively at his sister, who was suddenly having a quiet argument with the half-demon over how many cookies he was eating.

"So," Mrs. Higurashi said delicately, resting her elbows on the table and settling her head in her hands so that she could better see her daughter and the young man she so fancied. "When's the wedding?"

Both Inuyasha and Kagome spluttered, their little argument dying in an instant. Inuyasha actually started coughing as he swallowed the mass of food that had been in his mouth, doubled over and hacking. However, even the coughing fit could not entirely explain away his suddenly burning red face, and nothing but mortification could explain Kagome's as she clapped her hands to her face with only her eyes peeking through her fingers. Mrs. Higurashi smiled indulgently at their discomfort, positively ecstatic to at last be in the position to tease her daughter about marriage. Inuyasha's presence and reaction was an added bonus; the woman almost wanted to laugh at his scandalized expression as he looked back at her. However, her question wasn't entirely to get a reaction. Mrs. Higurashi was a very intelligent woman; she knew that the reason why her precious daughter had returned to the past was to be with the young man now kneeling awkwardly across from her.

"W- _wedding_?" Kagome stuttered, removing her fingers from her face and looking red-faced and appalled. "Mama, this is hardly… We're only here to… I… We just-"

"You what?" she pressed, enjoying how flustered she was making her daughter. No matter how much she loved the girl, she would never grow out of teasing her, and this was one of the best teasing sessions she had ever been able to witness, with one red-faced daughter and a flushed hanyo opening and closing his mouth without a word.

"We haven't even… I-I… Inuyasha hasn't-"

"I haven't... _Asked_ her to… To..." Inuyasha's voice trailed off with a little throat clearing cough as he looked down in supreme discomfort.

"Don't tell me you haven't proposed yet!" Mrs. Higurashi exclaimed, giving a huge fake gasp and letting her hand fly to her mouth. Neither young adult was looking at her, both of them choosing instead to stare at the table in equal, identical embarrassment. The half gone plate of cookies sat forgotten between their arms resting on the table. She would be lying if she said she wasn't surprised that neither of the two had made any move to get married, but she wasn't too surprised either. After all, neither daughter nor half-demon had seen one another in three years, and neither were well experienced in matters concerning the heart. Now that her daughter had returned, Mrs. Higurashi made a silent, mental note to talk to the girl sometime later. "Oh dear," she sighed dramatically, "I suppose it's not a total loss. At least now we can have a wedding here."

" _Mama_!"

Mrs. Higurashi finally let her peal of laughter loose, making Inuyasha's already stricken face all the more funny as his ears flicked here and there in his confusion. Kagome threw herself forward over the table with a loud groan. Her desire to tease her daughter sated - and prompted by the chime of the oven - Mrs. Higurashi stood to take another batch of cookies out of the oven.

"So what are you going to do, sis?" Souta piped up after a few moments of an awkward silence between Kagome and Inuyasha that could have been cut with a knife, and which Mrs. Higurashi simply reveled in.

"What's that, Souta?" Kagome said in a muffled voice, not looking up.

"Gramps isn't gonna be here for a few hours. What are you guys going to do while you wait for him?"

"Should we try the Well?" Inuyasha asked quietly, looking anywhere but at Kagome with his hands folded tensely into his sleeves. She sat up rather suddenly, and shook her head in the negative with a humorless laugh.

"I don't want to go anywhere near that thing right now," she murmured, trying to keep her answer on the downlow. Unfortunately, her mother seemed to have some sort of superhuman hearing comparable to Inuyasha's, because she turned to them with a wide smile.

"Why don't you two go out to town?" she asked in a chipper tone that sounded almost a little _too_ happy. "I'm sure your friends will be thrilled to see you again. Especially if…" her smile slipped a little bit before she continued, setting down the hot pan of cookies. "Especially if you're planning on… On staying in the Sengoku Jidai from now on…"

"Oh mama…" Kagome stood from where she was kneeling and rushed over to her mother with a hug. The elder woman ran her hand down her daughter's hair, eyes shut tight and willing herself not to cry again. "We're going to try and get through the Well whenever we can, I promise. Right, Inuyasha?"

Rather than remaining silent as he most likely would have done three years ago, Inuyasha nodded with a low, "Right." Mrs. Higurashi gave him a grateful smile over her daughter's head. She would never be able to thank the boy enough for all he had done for her and her daughter: for protecting her, for keeping her happy, for making her strong.

It took a little while, but Kagome and Inuyasha (albeit rather unwillingly) eventually came to the consensus to take up Mrs. Higurashi's suggestion and go out into the city for a few hours while they waited for Kagome's grandfather to return home. Out went a few calls, on went the old yellow bandana to cover Inuyasha's ears, on when Kagome's modern clothes - a green sweater, jeans, and brown boots - and into the wash went her traditional miko garb. Both Kagome and her mother had tried to convince Inuyasha to put on more modern clothing, but he had adamantly refused. His wary nature, Mrs. Higurashi noticed with a rather rueful smile as her daughter and the man she loved waved to her from the stone steps leading to the road, had been yet another thing about the hanyo not to have changed in the past three years.

Kagome lead Inuyasha down to the bus stop, holding his hand, which he shyly allowed, looking very carefully anywhere but at their fingers as they passed people walking. A short bus ride later (punctuated by the half-demon's snappish questionings and Kagome sitting on the aisle so that her nervous wreck of a partner didn't have to deal with people passing him and have access to the window), Kagome emerged from the bus with a huge sigh of relief into the sun. The streets were surprisingly less crowded, especially for a day so soon after school had been let out. Granted, that, and the fact today was a wednesday, might have been the reason why there were so few people out; what better way to celebrate getting out of school than to leave the city? Personally, Kagome was grateful for the lessened bustle; Inuyasha was still on edge from the bus ride, and people pressing in him from every side would do nothing to help his skittishness.

"Eri! Ayumi, Yuka-chan!" Kagome called out as the two crested a hill to cross a pedestrian bridge.

"Kagome-chan!" called three friends back to her. Kagome couldn't help herself, and sprinted forward to hug the girls, tripping over her words with her joy at seeing them and sounding, to Inuyasha and the two other young men who had been with the three girls, like a blithering idiot. A smile escaped Inuyasha, spreading across his face before he returned to a rather stony, cautious expression. _At least she's_ my _idiot_.

The plan was one of those quick-and-easy, fix-it-all, reusable emergency dinner date plans that the four girls had come up with ages ago, and was relatively simple in theory: find a restaurant, eat lunch, leave, find a theatre, watch some sort of action movie, scary slasher, or cheesy chick flick depending on the mood or general consensus, leave that, and drop everyone off at their respective houses one couple at a time, the greater part of the group leaving the boy to run the girl to her house and head home. However, those plans had been made without bringing into account one half-demon who had spent his entire life 500 years in the past. That threw a small wrench into the entire operation. It took a while for Kagome to explain to Inuyasha the plan of attack (" _Attack_? From who? Where?"), and even longer to explain to him that, yes, they could get any kind of food they wanted, and what exactly a movie was and that all one did was sit and watch a screen just like the "magic box in the living room back home".

Kagome had, of course, told him all this off to the side and very quietly. Had it only been her and her friends it wouldn't have been a problem; she had long since told them exactly what all those strange absences from school had really been, and had told them all at length about her adventures into Feudal Japan, and explained to them why for three years straight she was sullen and mature and never went on a single date with them. However, Ayumi and Yuka's boyfriends had come along with them, and that threw yet _another_ wrench into their plans. A _small_ wrench, but a wrench nonetheless. Kagome warned the half-demon that they would have to tread carefully, though she immediately regretted it as he suddenly looked at the two completely harmless, laughing boys like they were threats, and told him that if he had any questions, he was to ask her discretely so that she could answer without drawing attention. Well, any more attention. He managed to do that already without ever opening his mouth, with his white hair and Fire Rat Robes and strange gold eyes.

They ended up going into a ramen shop after Kagome told the group of Inuyasha's love of the noodles and how he had never yet been in one before. She felt her heart swell as she watched his wonderstruck expression when they walked into the cozy little shop. It ended up being rather expensive, too, when Inuyasha and the two boys decided to see who could eat the most ramen in the least amount of time. Inuyasha, with his insatiable appetite, inevitably won, having downed both his own bowl as well as half of Kagome's in less than eight minutes, whereas the other two hardly managed to finish their own portions in fifteen.

"That was awesome," he said, at last setting down his chopsticks and leaning back with a contented sigh. "I've never had such good ramen before. I didn't even _know_ you could put meat and eggs and stuff in it before." He turned to Kagome with a lazy smile. "Why didn't you ever do that, Kagome?"

"This is _real_ ramen. The stuff I'd always bring was prepackaged Instant Ramen," she answered him patiently, her voice soft as she leaned toward him so that the boys didn't hear. "And we were always traveling, too. I couldn't cook all that on the _road_ , you goof."

" _Keh_! I dunno if I'll ever be able to go back to that instant stuff now that we've had this."

"You're _so_ spoiled," Kagome chuckled, nudging him with her elbow.

"Well, even if I were, it's your own fault now, isn't it?" he teased right back at her. He was in a ridiculously good mood, even for him after eating almost two bowls of his favorite food. She rolled her eyes, but grinned.

"My mistake, I guess."

Choosing the movie was a more difficult decision. There really wasn't anything good in the theatres at the moment, their only options being an old, old black and white western, a terrifying horror movie about some sort of creature terrorizing New York, and a heartbreaking romance that had only recently come out. Kagome had thought that her companion would have gone for the horror or the western: he faced danger on a daily basis, after all, fighting demons and fighting for his life, and she supposed that he would have wanted to scoff at the plots, or marveled at the filmmaking and fighting. So she was surprised to ask him which he wanted to see, and to have him look up at the ceiling with a steadily reddening face, saying that he didn't really _care_ , but he wanted her to be _happy_ so he _guessed_ he would like them to see the tragedy, but again that he _really_ didn't _care_ one way or another because the whole ordeal was _stupid_ and even if he _did_ choose differently, he and the two other young men were likely to be overruled by the four snickering girls.

Which they were.

So here they were now, sitting awkwardly side by side with their popcorn and water, ten rows back from the screen and a little to the right of the center - Yuka had informed them very matter-of-factly that this was the only acceptable seating in a movie theater - and gazing expectantly up at the huge sheet and projection as the room darkened. Kagome could feel Inuyasha tense up at the change in lighting, and reached for his arm in reassurance. The thought suddenly struck her that she was rather glad that they hadn't gone to see the horror movie, not only because she would probably start screaming, but because it would undoubtedly have loud noises and suspenseful sequences ending with jump scares and other screaming moviegoers, and none of those things would be at all pleasant for an on edge, dog-eared, anti-social inu-hanyo.

There was something totally strange about the movie, the two observed about halfway through. Inuyasha, new as he might have been to the magical world of cinema, and taken as he was by the magic of it, was no fool, and easily picked up on the story line and subtly obvious nuances of the performances. He came to the conclusion that the movie was rather frightening, though not for any reason in the story. It was the story _itself_ ; a tale of a boy and a girl, thrown together by fate and forced to work with one another despite their initial dislike, only to grow closer and closer until their realized that one simply could not survive without the other. Oh they had their friends, of course, and they had their mission - to kill some high ranking "businessman", whatever that was - but their relationship seemed to be first and foremost subject in the film. He supposed this was why it was called a " _romance_ ".

The " _tragedy_ " part of the deal came near the end, when the man was mortally wounded by their enemies and the woman was "shot" and right in front of his eyes. Inuyasha could hardly believe his eyes as he watched the man claw his way over to where the woman lay, cradling her head in his arms and sobbing - an act in itself which was heart wrenching - and watch her take her last gurgling breath before dying. The saline scent of tears and sniffing came from all sides of him, most obvious in Kagome's case as she was, well… _Kagome_. _His_ Kagome. She seemed fine afterwards, praising the acting and gushing over the most romantic moments of the movie, but the feature had left Inuyasha rather disquieted. Not that he would ever admit it.

Kagome, Eri, Yuka, Ayumi, and the two boys decided against walking each other home, the boys parting ways from their respective companions and leaving to catch the subway. The three girls decided to follow Inuyasha and their friend. They claimed to just be taking the same route home as them, but Inuyasha and Kagome knew better. They made small talk on their walk, stopping now and then to look into a store window at a sparkly something or other, or an awesome this and that. Kagome informed Inuyasha that she had told her friends all about her time in the Sengoku Jidai, so they could all talk freely, the three girls asking the odd question about life in the past, or what it was like being part demon. Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to tell them that being hanyo wasn't a good or fun thing, and so he didn't, looking to Kagome for help which she typically lended.

Both were relieved to finally say goodbye, Kagome hugging her three friends tearfully as she told them this might he the last time she saw them, and making their way up the stone steps to the Higurashi Shrine, now dyed orange with the setting sun. Kagome still hadn't released her grip on Inuyasha's hand from when she had took it while they walked, and if the half-demon was honest with himself, he was rather glad she didn't.

"So," she asked about halfway up the steps, looking at him with a tired, content expression. "How'd you like today?"

He grunted, looking away, though betraying his attempted indifference by involuntarily squeezing her hand. "Was okay, I guess," he mumbled under his breath at last, looking at the stairs.

"Yeah?" She nodded vaguely. "What was your favorite part? Ramen shop?"

She watched Inuyasha's moody, brooding expression became slightly more pensive, his pretty amber eyes becoming more unfocused as he thought. "No," he said after a few seconds thought, shaking his head and his tone rather lighter than before.

"What then? Did you like looking at those porcelain frogs or something?" Kagome pressed, beginning to swing their hands back and forth as they continued their way up the shrine steps. They had almost crested the top by now.

"No."

"Was it the movie, then? I can't imagine it being the movie, but-"

" _Keh_! You sure are at it with the questions today, _wench_ ," Inuyasha huffed, looking at her again with a furrowed brow, sounding less annoyed than he did playful. Kagome took the jibe and insult in stride.

"Well then, what _was_ your favorite part?"

They climbed the last step, coming to a halt at the top and gazing at the sight of the Goshinboku, waving in full leaf in the breeze, at the house and shrine, everything dyed in shades of orange and brown and red and blue with the quickly setting sun. Quietly, Inuyasha let go of Kagome's hand and pulled her into an embrace. Her own arms came up as more of a reflex than actual thought, looping around his back and settling there securely. They swayed a moment and looked at each other. Kagome was struck by the light playing on the hanyo's face, orange and blue shadows and white hair dyed cream, the sunlight making his amber eyes glitter like they really were precious gems. She couldn't stop the idiotic grin from spreading across her face, and he couldn't stop the tiny smirk that crossed his as he answered, truthfully and without sarcasm, in a moment of perfect, pure content.

"You."

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 _Glossary:_

Goshinboku - the Sacred Tree

Sengoku Jidai - the Japanese warring states era, translated to "the Feudal Era"

Hanyo - a half demon/youkai

Jii-chan - a term of endearment used for Kagome's grandfather, translated to "gramps"

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 **A/N _Yeaaahhh_ , this chapter is technically over 4500 words... Sorry, but I wanted a long chapter for some Inukag coz yeah?**

 **Uhhhh, I got nothing else to say; my brain's fried. Wish me luck on stage remembering my lines, I guess? I got a theatre performance coming up in the next week and, uhhh... wOOO MAMA XD**

 **Buh-bye, have fun, don't die, love yourselves, leAVE A REVIEW PLEASE, THEY FEED MY SOUL Okei bye**

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 _Currently listening to: Smile - Mikky Ekko_


	8. The Misfortune of Knowing

**Chapter 8**

 _The Misfortune of Knowing_

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"Jii-chan!" Kagome essentially launched herself at the old man sitting on the couch the moment she walked in the door. He looked dumbstruck as his granddaughter wrapped her arms around his frail old figure, kissing him on the cheek and pulling back, grinning.

"I'll be darned," he muttered, a little smile crossing his own weathered and wrinkled visage. "You really did manage to get back."

"Gramps didn't believe us when we said you and Inu-no-nii-chan made it back through the Well," Souta chuckled, gazing fondly at his grandfather's wonderstruck expression. "Told us he wouldn't believe it till he saw it, said that Mama and I were going crazier than he was."

The old man snorted, and sat up even straighter, looking as though he were trying to keep some semblance of dignity and glaring suddenly at Inuyasha. The hanyo tensed a little bit from beside Kagome, his ears twitching. The old coot was pretty much harmless, he knew, but his sutras weren't completely useless all the time. They might have been weak, but the things hurt like sticking a finger in an electric socket!

"You're treating my granddaughter well, boy?" he said after a few long moments of staring that left Inuyasha nervous. "You two get married yet? Build a house?"

Both the half demon and his companion looked as though they wanted to evaporate into thin air. " _G-Grandpa_!" Kagome stuttered, shifting uncomfortably and reaching up to pull at her hair.

"They haven't had a chance yet, Father," called Mrs. Higurashi, peeking around the kitchen door and smiling. "Kagome's only been gone a week."

" _Mother_!" Kagome mewled, feebly trying to turn the attention away from her and Inuyasha's relationship. "That's not- What are you even… _Mama_!"

"I want some grandbabies!" Mrs. Higurashi shot back with a grin, her dark eyes twinkling with some sort of mischief. "And I want at least six, dear. Who can resist little doggy ears?"

Kagome wished she could have died on the spot. Indeed, she looked as though she could have. The first person to actually die of embarrassment in the history of everything. She groaned and covered her burning red face with her hands, unwilling to look at an equally red Inuyasha, fiddling with the string around his chest and shoulder and casting strange, mortified glances at Kagome. The entire Higurashi family burst out into laughter at the daughter's distress, swaying a little as she glanced at each of them in turn through her fingers.

The hanyo and the girl didn't speak for a while after, until the laughter abated, and both of the adults sighed happily. Mrs. Higurashi certainly approved of their union, gazing fondly at their stiff figures standing beside each other in the living room. Even the old man grudgingly blessed the two, despite the boy being a part demon. Neither of them _said_ this, of course. They knew where to draw the line between teasing and serious matters.

"So why is it that you've returned, Kagome?" Jii-chan asked, settling his old bones back down into the couch with a little sigh. "Your mother was saying something about a sword you were looking for?"

"Less looking for _it_ , more looking for information about it," Kagome mumbled, staring at the ceiling. Her face still felt warm.

"Well, then maybe I can help you out there," said the old man with a sage smile. Kagome knew better, in most cases, than to take that smile seriously. While her grandfather was kind, and he did know a lot, most of what he knew was a load of bull crap and magic and fairytales that had been passed down to him over the hundreds of years the Higurashi Shrine had been in the possession of their family. Utter nonsense, with a dash of hogwash and served with a warm plate of bah-hooey. However, Kagome and her friends were desperate, and her grandfather had indeed given the inutachi some very valuable information within all of the ridiculous gobbledygook which so often spewed from his mouth; rare gems of priceless information within a dungheap of "storied history". Both she and Inuyasha could only pray that this would be one of those times when they could shed a little light on their current situation.

"Gramps, have you ever heard of something called the Kismet Blade?" Kagome asked delicately, looking her grandfather square in the face, gazing steadily into his old eyes.

"The Kismet Blade?" he asked faintly. "The Sword of Fate?"

"Yes," Kagome nodded, her nervous excitement rising into her throat. "You've heard of it?"

"Well… Certainly I've heard of it," her grandfather muttered. "Never _seen_ it, of course. The Blade was lost to mortals many millennia ago…"

"What _is_ the Blade?" Inuyasha asked gruffly, his arms folded into his red sleeves and very carefully not looking at Kagome. "Where'd it come from, what's it do?"

"Time didn't have a name when the Kismet Blade was forged," Jii-chan closed his eyes and nodded sagely, settling into his long winded explanation as though he were getting ready to tell a story… Which the two young adults knew he was. "It was the weapon belonging to a great Dog God, the Inukami. The Inukami had long loved mankind, and used the weapon to save those whose Fates had been cut short: women who died in childbirth, children, bandit attacks..."

"Save people?" Kagome questioned, confusion written in the crease of her brow. "But it's a sword. Are you saying it's like the Tenseiga… Well…" Her voice trailed off at the stupidity of her question; her grandfather had never heard of what used to be Sesshomaru's sword, and she wasn't about to explain what it did, either.

"The sword was so made that it could capture the souls of those it cut, and absorb them into the Blade itself," Jii-chan continued, unfazed by her question. "The Inukami-sama used the Blade to capture the lives of humans and youkai who died far too early, and transposed them into new lives and bodies."

Kagome shifted a little, almost unnerved. The Blade so far sounded like a far more accurate form of creating what she was - a reused, transposed soul - more than anything.

"But it's a weapon," Inuyasha started, before the old man cut him off by continuing without noticing.

"When the Inukami-sama left the sword to the emperor, it eventually became lost to the evil men of the world, and used not to save souls, but to imprison them. So many souls were taken, many of them swore vengeance, their souls trapped for time and eternity. The souls gave the sword consciousness and corrupted it, and now, the Kismet Blade is a weapon of destruction, bent on becoming stronger until it can break the souls free, possessing those who wield it to do its bidding."

A quiet silence fell, broken only by the soft clanking of Mrs. Higurashi's pot and spoon as she made stew. "It possess whoever uses it?" Kagome said softly, her dark eyes losing a little of their light. Her grandfather gave her a solemn nod.

Mrs. Higurashi called them all to the dinner table not too soon after, but Kagome and Inuyasha stayed in the living room, somber and worried.

"If this Kismet Blade really does capture souls like the old coot says," Inuyasha said in a hushed tone, "Then it's even more dangerous in the hands of a strong youkai like that old demon said had taken it."

"We've got to get back to Sango and Miroku," Kagome agreed, her brow knitted together as she held her midriff with her arms. "We've got to stop this demon, whoever they are."

"I still think we should be looking for Rin," Inuyasha grumbled, looking away. There was some odd emotion in his golden eyes just behind the righteous annoyance that so often accompanied his character, that Kagome couldn't quite understand, couldn't quite read. It was almost sad, it was almost fond, almost concerned.

"We'll find Rin," she said confidently, threading her arms through his crossed arms and hugging the hanyo. They swayed for a moment before the half demon returned the gesture, resting his mouth on the top of her head in a begrudging, quietly defeated sort of way.

" _Keh_... I know we will, wench. Don't need _you_ to tell me that."

"Hey Kagome, quit sucking face with your fiance and come eat!"

Once again red faced and wide eyed, Kagome and Inuyasha sprang apart as though they had been electric shocked, glancing at one another with high embarrassment before making their way into the kitchen, Kagome grousing at her brother, "We're not engaged, stupid. Stop it." She missed the furtive glances the half demon continued to give her all through the serving of the food. And while Souta saw the bright, worried, gentle looks, he didn't know what they meant, but while Mrs. Higurashi saw them, she could fully appreciate just how much her teasing had gone to the poor boy's head, and how much he truly did love her daughter.

They had to leave, and soon. They knew it too, and the meal was stretched to the point of discomfort as Mrs. Higurashi's daughter and the man she loved avoided getting up and doing the thing which they knew they must. The Sengoku Jidai may have been _their_ world, but there was something special about this one that wasn't lost on them, not even on Inuyasha. It was safe here. It was comforting. And Kagome's family was here, a family she might not ever see again when she and Inuyasha left once again through the Bone Eater's Well.

Granted, that was, if they could make it through the Bone Eater's Well, back 500 years into the past, back into _their_ world.

They could only pray that they could.

So they all ate slowly, dragging out the inevitable. Even Inuyasha was hesitant, picking at his bowl of stew that had been presented to him my Mrs. Higurashi. But despite their laughter, and conversation, and the dessert which followed, their time ran out, and Kagome and Inuyasha were standing tensely inside the Well House with Mrs. Higurashi, Jii-chan, and Souta, Kagome back in her traditional miko garb and Inuyasha gripping Tetsusaiga's hilt so his knuckles were white. After a had long fallen outside, the Well House soft with black shadows and silvery blue light.

Kagome smiled sadly, and with a sniffle, a wet chuckle, and many watery grins, the entire Higurashi family was wrapped around each other in a hug. Inuyasha stood to the side, shuffling awkwardly and watching with his bright eyes. When the little group broke apart, they turned to him and, much to his ever-living surprise, he was embraced as well, Souta running hugging the taller man for a brief moment and running back to his sister. The old coot fixed the half demon with a beady-eyed stare before saying with begrudging approval, "I don't trust you all that well, boy, but you better treat my granddaughter well. If I get any wind of her getting treated badly, I'll find some way to get a sacred Higurashi ofuda on you."

"I… Uhh," he started lamely before Mrs. Higurashi threw her arms around his chest, hugging him tightly. Once again, he glanced in Kagome's direction and, with her little nod of, hugged the woman back. Unbidden to his mind came a faint memory of his mother. He hadn't been hugged by someone like a mother in almost 20 years of his life. It was… Nice… He blinked as she pulled back, gazing fondly at him at an arm's length.

"I hope the next time I see you," she said with an impish smile, "My daughter is the next Mrs. no Taisho. Deal?"

The half demon spluttered (along with Kagome's little mantra that she had seemed to so often say today of " _Mama_!"), his mortified flush obvious even in the shadow darkness of the old shed. But Mrs. Higurashi had gotten her fill of embarrassing the poor boy, and simply patted his sun darkened and faintly scarred cheek before stepping back with a little chuckle. The entire family watched as Kagome glanced over her shoulder and said softly, "Here's to hoping…"

Inuyasha bit his lip, his fang digging into the flesh, and reached for Kagome's hand as they stepped to the top of the Well. She reciprocated the tiny action, which had taken her quite by surprise, by entwining her fingers with his and gripping them reassuringly. "You know," she murmured to him, staring down into the Well. He sniffed a little, the a hot nervous aroma seeping into her natural scent. "Mrs. no Taisho has a nice ring to it."

" _K-keh_!" The hanyo looked away, ears pressed against his hair, his shoulders hunching a little with discomfort, but Kagome didn't miss the way his hand squeezed hers for a fraction of a second. Her heart fluttered with giddiness before she turned and looked one for time at her family, smiled, and jumped.

It looked like the gods were merciful today.

* * *

 _Glossary_ :

Jii-chan - a term of endearment used for Kagome's grandfather; "gramps"

Inu-no-nii-chan - a term of endearment for Inuyasha, used by Souta; literally "dog brother"

Hanyo - a half demon/youkai

Inutachi - the group of Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo; often translated to "Inuyasha and co."

Gobbledygook - ridiculousness

Inukami-sama - literally "dog god"

Tenseiga - a sword which used to belong to Sesshomaru before being destroyed

Youkai - a demon/spirit

Sengoku Jidai - the Japanese feudal era

Tetsusaiga - Inuyasha's sword

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; "priestess"

Ofuda - paper tags used in the Shinto religion to purify and/or excorize (youkai)

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 **A/N I am _so_ not a master of subtlety unless I keep my mouth shut. Hahahah**

 **So here's another chapter, I guess. I hope you like it? I really appreciate the reviews, actually... Hahah...**

 **Holy crap, opening night for my play was tonight and dANG that was weird. I died a little bit.**

 **A few notes, I've never liked how in those modern Inuyasha AUs, Inuyasha always seems to be named "Inuyasha Taisho". It doesn't fit in my head. Plus, the term for his father was the Inu-no-taisho, and it's not so crazy to have people be named things like "Kyle of the Plains" in other languages... So I've given Inuyasha the alias of Inuyasha no Taisho. Hah. Yeah, I bet Kagome would have used it once or twice when they were in the modern era.**

 **Welp, yeah. _Reviews are greatly welcome_! _Have fun, love yourselves, don't die_ , wish me luck!**

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 _Currently listening to: Outside - Ellie Goulding_


	9. Impaled

**Chapter 9**

 _Impaled_

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It was lucky Inuyasha and Kagome were only gone for a day; not only did it save Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kaede from an unnecessary amount of grief wondering if the two were ever going to return from the future, but it also ensured that all of their traveling supplies was still relatively ready to go. A good thing. They were going to have to use all of it.

It was also quite the shock to the inutachi as Inuyasha and Kagome strolled through the door of Kaede's hut, quite at their ease and grinning. Kagome was immediately embraced by Sango in a hug, followed by Shippo launching himself onto her and then Inuyasha, blubbering almost as badly as he had when they first left. Miroku and Kaede looked both shocked and relieved that the two had both made it to the future and back, and gotten the information about the Kismet Bade.

Not that it was good news.

"So the Blade absorbs souls," Sango said, patting Hirohito on the back and staring intently at Kagome. "And then it keeps them and grows stronger?"

"That's what gramps said while we were eating," Kagome affirmed, picking at a loose thread on her kimono. "The souls all got corrupted by evil. They want to escape. But they need to get stronger souls to do that, too, so it can break free of itself."

"Quite the impressive prison," Miroku nodded, jingling his staff as he shifted where he sat. Sango looked coolly at him, flicking his hand with her finger. It had been inching unconsciously forward on her thigh until it was a little too close to being… Intimate. Realizing what he was doing, Miroku grinned sheepishly and pulled away before continuing. "So the Kismet Blade needs more souls. I'm going to assume that powerful souls are more desired?"

"Probably," Inuyasha agreed, tucking his hands into his sleeves and leaning back against the wall. "So strong youkai, daiyoukai, high-ranking monks-"

"Kagome," Shippo said, green eyes widening.

Inuyasha blinked. "Pardon?"

"Kagome's got a huge soul," Shippo explained, gesturing to the woman. "Remember Kanna's mirror? It couldn't suck in her soul because it was too big. And on top of that, she's got a lot of spiritual power."

"That's true, isn't it?" Sango said, looking to her friend with an apprehensive expression. "Kagome's soul would be something the Kismet Blade would find _very_ appealing, meaning-"

"Kagome's in more danger than the rest of us," Inuyasha finished, looking at the woman with worry as well. Kagome scowled in indignation. Were they going to tell her to stay behind as they went to go destroy the Blade? Because if so, they would have to lock her in a hut before she'd do that, and she opened her mouth to tell them that before Kaede cut in from her place by the stew pot.

"I would not be so sure about that, Inuyasha," she said, her single eye focused on the stew she was currently stirring.

"And why's that?" grumped the hanyo, shrinking back a little up against Kagome at the stern, one-eyed glare suddenly set upon him.

"Because ye are a very powerful hanyo," she explained. "Human souls and youkai souls don't usually mix: human spiritual powers and demon youki just do not seem to get along. But in a hanyo, those forces are perfectly balanced in a very unusual way, which allows a hanyo to possess both human hearts and demon youki. On top of that, ye had a great daiyoukai for a father, so your demon blood is very strong, and your human heart is able to compete with it on a nearly equal level."

"So you're saying that just coz I'm strong, the Kismet Blade's gonna want my soul too," said the hanyo skeptically, his tone dry and cutting, but lacking too much bite… Because it was Kaede. And Kaede was kind of scary.

"That is exactly what I am saying," nodded the old miko, turning back to the the stew. "So if you were going to suggest Kagome stay behind, you would have to stay behind as well for the exact same reason."

Kagome grinned brightly at the old woman, heart swelling with gratitude. Inuyasha, on the other hand, looked angry. "Look here, _hag_ , I'm part demon! I can protect myself! Kagome-"

"Kagome _what_ , Inuyasha?" Kagome asked dryly herself, her smile sliding off her face as she looked to the far too overprotective half demon. He swallowed, visibly. Obviously, he could almost smell the word on the tip of her tongue.

"Nothing," he growled at last, shoulders hunching and brow furrowed.

"That's what I thought," Kagome chirped, her smile returning as she patted his thigh. He jumped a little at the contact.

"Here's what I'm wondering," Sango said, shifting Hirohito into her arms and rocking him. He cooed and gurgled happily. "The Blade needs powerful souls to free itself from _itself_ , right? So it possesses anyone who holds it and uses it. Who took it? Because we're going to need to worry about this person just as much as we need to worry about the Blade itself."

"Youkai, white hair, wants to kill his brother," Shippo ticked off the details on his tiny fox fingers, gazing at the ceiling in concentration. "That's not enough to go off of."

"Here's what I suggest," Miroku said watching as Kagome stood and walked to Sango, who handed her baby off to the girl before returning to where she was before. "I think what we need to do is go back to that old mountain who held the Blade to begin with. See if we can't get any more information out of him. Surely he knows something more about the thief, or perhaps a way to track the Kismet Blade itself. What do you think, Inuyasha?" There was no answer from the opposite side of the fire. "Inuyasha?"

"Huh?" The half demon looked distractedly at his friend, eyes unfocused and cloudy.

"Weren't you listening?" prodded the monk, gazing curiously at his younger friend.

" _Keh_! Of course I was!"

He hadn't been. Sango knew it. Miroku knew it. Shippo and Kaede knew it. They knew it because they had all watched Kagome take Hirohito from his mother, watched her sit down, and watched as Inuyasha stared at the woman, jaw hanging slightly open and ears pricked forward. The all had seen the strange look in his eye as she rocked the little baby in her arms, breathing more than humming and leaning against his arm.

"Well, I think it's a good idea," Kagome spoke up, oblivious to every silent interaction around her. "If nothing else, it'll at least get pointed in the right direction. We can at least ask the demon where the thief went, and we'll go from there."

"Well then, it's settled." Miroku clapped his hands together and grinned. "We'll head back out to where that old rock youkai was tomorrow morning. Now give me my son, please, Kagome. Inuyasha looks like he's about to have an aneurism."

Kagome's eyebrows flew comically almost to her hairline, turning to the half demon sitting awkwardly beside her, who looked away and turned bright red the moment her eyes fell on him.

She was all too happy to oblige to Miroku's request.

 _ **} } }{ }{}{}{}{}{}{ }{ { {**_

The path was set out for them. They knew the way. They knew what they needed information wise. They knew their end goal. What they didn't know was what to expect, nor indeed that they would need to expect anything.

Fate was funny that way. It seemed to creep up behind them and surprise them, screaming in a silently derisive voice, "So you thought! Fools!", just before dealing them a hand that would be almost impossible to play. It had, thus far, been only their ridiculously good luck that had supported them until now. Now, that luck seemed to have drained away.

How, one might ask? How could it be that a sword - a piece of metal without any means of controlling itself, could be so powerful, so dangerous, and so determined to hurt the little group? Perhaps it was the fact that it was the weapon of gods, originally a gift to mankind before becoming corrupt. Perhaps it was the individual souls trapped within the metallic depths, the mob mentality convincing them that all good things must come to an end. Both seemed to be the correct answer, in all honesty. Though no one knew it, the sword seemed to live by the creed, "All good things must come to an end."

And why all "good" things? Why would such an evil thing desire good?

The answer was, simply, that the sword knew that good things were more powerful than evil things. It was just as easy to absorb goodness and convince it that to get its freedom it should follow darkness as it was to convince evil to do evil. But the previous route was far more effective, strength-wise.

These ideas mulled over themselves in Kagome's head as they walked down the road. They made sense, and she had even mentioned the idea to the group at large to general agreement. It didn't however make their task any simpler. They all knew that in the end, they had to destroy the Kismet Blade. And they all knew it wouldn't go down quietly and without a fight. The young woman clenched her bow - the Bow of Mount Azusa - a moment before relaxing her grip with a little sigh. She really needed to relax. They had faced much more dangerous things in the past and lived through them, right? There was no way that they could fail! Of course, she kept her reservations - over confidence was almost a guarantee the failure - but she kept them quiet, in the back of her mind, and kept praying that she was right.

"Hey," said a low voice beside her. She looked up and smiled at Inuyasha, who was gazing down at her in concern. "You okay? You're all nervous."

"What makes you think that?" she questioned lightly, hoping to avoid the question for whatever reason.

"You're all tense. And you smell nervous, too," answered the hanyo, leaning down so his nose was right by her face. His head was tilted to the side, bringing the unbidden and irrepressible image of a puppy to her mind. She sighed again. Sometimes, there was just no fooling the guy.

"Yeah, I guess I am a little worried," she admitted, rubbing her arm with her free hand. "This whole ordeal is reminding me a little bit of Tokijin. Remember that sword?"

"Like I could forget the damn thing," growled the inu-hanyo, straightening once again. He was right, of course; the fight with the sword made from the fang of one of Naraku's offspring had not been a fun one. It was only worsened by the fact that Sesshomaru had come to claim the blade soon after, and it had been quite the formidable weapon in his hands. "Possesses whoever wields it, uses them for its own means. Dakki did that too, remember?"

"Yeah," Kagome nodded. "But those swords were both forged by mortals. If Totosai's taught me anything while we were traveling, it's that it matters who made the weapon, and it matters what the weapon's made out of. I guess we just don't know what to expect, and that makes me a little nervous. Oh well." Kagome stretched her arms high above her head and yawned before looking at Inuyasha with a mischievous little smile on her lips. A shiver of apprehension ran up the half demon's spine at how similar the look was to the look her mother had given to him not twenty four hours ago. "At least I'm not as nervous as you were last night around the fire when I was holding Hirohito. Were you having dirty thoughts or something?"

" _Keh_! As _if_!" The red flush of embarrassment suddenly coloring his face told the young woman otherwise, and she laughed. Had this been almost four years ago, at the beginning of their journeyings, she would have "sat" him out of her own mortification. Indeed, she almost had during a very similar situation when she had leaned against him as they guarded a dead princess from some sort of soul-stealing demon, alone and still mistrusting. However, this wasn't four years ago. A lot had happened. She reached for his hand and wove her fingers together with his, smiling up at his humiliated expression. He really was so painfully shy, it made her want to laugh at how precious it was, and scream at how infuriating it was as well. He glanced down at their hands, then looked away again down the road.

He blanched.

Alarmed, Kagome turned her gaze to where he was looking, and felt her heart leap all at once into her throat, clutching Inuyasha's arm in fear.

It had been frightening enough three years ago to meet Gakusanjin, a huge, living mountain who could have crushed them all with one blow. It was even more frightening to watch an even bigger mountain youkai as this ancient demon, and to watch him fighting… Something. From here, it looked to be a ball of light, something small flashing now and again as it attacked, dancing here and there, moving so fast it appeared to almost be teleporting.

Before the inutachi could do more than draw their weapons - Sango handing her son to Shippo with the order to hide and protect him - the ancient old youkai who had once harbored the Kismet Blade within its stone belly fell with a thunderous, earth-shaking crash to the ground.

He was dead.

"Oh my…" Sango's voice trailed off as the shaking stopped, and the ball of light stiled in the air before darting downward into the trees.

"What on earth… What was..." Miroku said hoarsely.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome had turned from the horrific scene to see Inuyasha's bloodless face, eyes glazed with something almost like fear. She shook his arm. "Inuyasha!"

"Sesshomaru…" he croaked, blinking and raising his hand to Tetsusaiga's hilt.

"Sesshomaru?" Miroku asked. The unease in his voice was almost tangible. "What do you-"

His words were never finished. They never needed to be. In something less than a heartbeat, his question was answered for him, the towering, regal form of Inuyasha's daiyoukai half-brother appearing before them, Rin and Jakken standing just behind him. In his pale hand, he held the most delicate looking sword any of them had ever seen: a thin, almost European looking thing, double sided with a finely wrought gold hilt. At the sword blade's base was set a blood-red, teardrop shaped jewel, and the silvery white blade seemed to glow with an odd, cold light.

It was a tense few seconds as the inutachi struggled to find their voices. Inuyasha's hand was shaking on his sword hilt before he drew it in one fluid motion, surprise replaced with the inexplicable ire he felt every time he looked at his brother's face, and only fueled by the past few minutes.

"You bastard," he growled, pointing the great silver sword at that cool, beautiful face, and sweeping Kagome behind him with his free arm. " _You're_ the one who took the Kismet Blade."

Sesshomaru continued to stare coldly at the half demon. The silence seemed to only make Inuyasha angrier.

" _Answer me_!" he shouted eyes flashing. Miroku ran forward, swinging his staff in front of the younger man in a silent warning. Inuyasha pushed it away roughly, glaring now at the monk. "Leave me alone."

"Rin?" Kagome was surprised at how feeble her voice was, but she couldn't help it. Rin's face… She was staring at Sesshomaru with tears in her eyes and something that looked oddly like… Fear. The girl turned to Kagome when she called, her face twisting in the ugly grimace of one trying not to cry.

"What have you done to her?" Sango spat at the daiyoukai, coming to a stop beside her husband and crouching, ready to fight. "Why did you kill that demon?" Jakken seemed to swell with indignation, his already buggy Kappa eyes bugging still further.

"Fools! Lord Sesshomaru doesn't need to explain his actions to you, you insolent-"

"Jakken." The little shriveled youkai gulped visibly, shrinking in submission and stepping back. Sesshomaru turned back to the bristling inutachi, unfazed by the arrow pointed directly at his chest, the sword at his face as he sheathed his own. "This Sesshomaru killed the old fool because his death strengthened the Blade. Now, die."

He seemed faster than Kagome remembered. She almost certainly would have died at the first blow had Inuyasha not caught her up and lunged away. His strike landed behind the group, leaving four sizzling gashes in the dirt. Her breath was knocked out of her lungs as her back hit the ground, Inuyasha almost crushing her as he landed on top of her and rolling off. "Kagome, get Rin!" he hissed before launching himself at his half brother. Dazed, Kagome rolled over as well, pausing on her hands and knees and vaguely aware of Inuyasha and Sesshomaru fighting somewhere to her right.

Rin was kneeling in the dirt beside Jakken, four or five yards away. Kagome stumbled to her feet, keeping a firm hold on her bow and ran to the girl. "Rin! Come on!" she gasped, kicking the shrieking Kappa away with her foot and reaching for the girl's hand. To her surprise, she took it, allowing herself to get yanked back to the inutachi with little resistance.

"Rin!" Sango said, kneeling to the ground herself as Kagome and Rin approached and taking the girl's face in her hands before embracing her. It struck Kagome a little odd at first, but she was over it quickly; a lot happened in three years. That, and…

"Inuyasha!" Miroku's cry of alarm made Kagome whirl around to see something that made her blood run cold.

Sesshomaru had thrust his arm clean through the hanyo's back, shattering ribs, fracturing vertebrae, slashing organs. Shock made Inuyasha's eyes widen, and with a wet, rattling gasp, he collapsed to the earth. It was pure agony beyond anything he had ever felt: worse than being purified at Mount Hakurei, worse than being poisoned by spider heads, worse than Kageromaru, worse even than the first time Sesshomaru had impaled him clean through. He coughed, and blood spattered the pale dust of the road, only inches from Sesshomaru's feet.

" _Inuyasha_!"

His heart stopped.

 _Kagome_.

He could hear the thuds of her footfalls as she sprinted towards where he lay, smell the fear rolling off of her in waves despite the overwhelming scent of his own hot blood seeping from his stomach. _No… No no no no no noooo…_ Stop _, Kagome_ …

Kagome, for her part, was doing rather well not falling into hysterics, though the utter shock of watching Inuyasha fall to the ground in slow motion might have helped with that, if one could call that "help". She fell to the ground beside the man she loved and rolled him onto his back so she could see his face, completely ignoring Sesshomaru only a couple feet away, holding his bloody claws aloft and leering down his nose at them. A dribble of dark red was dripping out of the corner of his mouth, and Kagome struggled with shaky hands to wipe it away with the corner of her sleeve, tears flowing as she stared into the dull, almost lifeless amber eyes. "Inuyasha," she choked once again through her tears, now trying to stem flow of thick, heavy blood from the gaping hole in his stomach .

She didn't get very far, however, because those amber eyes suddenly flashed, and she was suddenly pushed away by two very strong hands, thrown nearly five feet away. Something whistled above her head, which cracked painfully against a rock a split second later. Vision blurring for a moment, she sat back up, trying to make sense of the situation, which wasn't helped by Hiraikotsu suddenly flying through the air. Inuyasha was once again lying on his face, his position suggesting he had been the one to push her away, silver hair dyed red. He was looking at something above her head, suddenly bright amber eyes glazed with pain and terror. She blinked. Sesshomaru was gone from the scene, she noticed.

But not for long.

Inuyasha, Sango, Rin, and Miroku watched in horror as once again, Sesshomaru leapt forward, deftly dodging Hiraikotsu and swinging his poisonous claws through the air. Four diagonal gashes appeared on Kagome's side as she gasped and flew another few feet away from the force of the strike. She rolled over, her back to them, and didn't get up.

" _Kagome_!" The heart wrenching, devastated cry drowned out any other call from Sango, Miroku, Rin, or Shippo. Inuyasha's arms shook from under him, the blood continuing to pour from the wound in his stomach. His vision was growing blurry, everything suddenly doubling and weaving like he were a drunk. A very wounded, terrified, heartbroken drunk. "Damn you, you _bastard_! I swear if she dies I'm gonna to _gut_ _you alive_!"

"The time to kill you has not presented itself, half-breed," declared the Daiyoukai in a cold, regal tone, gazing dispassionately at the hanyo who shared his blood and completely ignoring the threat. Blood which was flowing freely onto the ground, puddling and turning the dirt into foul-smelling mud. There was so much… Had he been human, he would have surely been dead by now. Turning on his heel, he glanced once at Rin, still clutched in Sango's left arm. At her petrified stare, he looked away, the knuckles resting on the hilt of the Kismet Blade turning whiter still than his already pale skin. "Come, Jakken. Let us leave these fools for now."

Wide-mouthed, Jakken also glanced back at Rin. "B-but my lord Sesshomaru, what about-"

"Rin will not accompany us," interjected the inu-youkai, turning his narrowed gaze onto the shriveled little kappa. "Lest you wish to die, _fool_ , you will ask no more questions."

Silently, Jakken's yellow gaze left Rin's face and he climbed onto Sesshomaru's furs, the two of them leaping into the air and flying away, far away.

The inutachi stared for a moment into the distance where the daiyoukai had disappeared, horrified. But not Inuyasha.

" _Kagome_!" he rasped, the blood in his throat preventing uninterrupted speech and dribbling down his chin. Crawling to where she lay, he continued to speak without " _Kagome_... Oh _gods_ , K-kagome! Damn it wench, don't you die on me… _Don't you dare die on me_! Oh gods, please, koishii… _Kagome_!"

"Inu… Yasha."

Kagome suddenly moved, pushing herself up out of the dirt, long dark hair hanging in her eyes, glazed over with pain. She turned dazedly to look at the silver-haired hanyo an arms length away from her, her expression somewhat confused as she squinted at him. "Inuyasha?:

"Dammit koi… Don't… Don' _ever_ do that… 'gain…"

His eyes rolled back in his head, and he collapsed once again into a puddle of his own blood.

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Inutachi - the group consisting of Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku; often translated to "Inuyasha and co." in the manga

Youkai - a demon or spirit

Daiyoukai - a powerful youkai/demon

Youki - demonic power

Hanyo - a half demon

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; "priestess"

Tokijin - a sword forged from the fang of Kaijinbo; one of Sesshomaru's previous swords

Dakki - a sword which could absorb youki (it's ability was eventually taken by Tetsusaiga, creating the Dragon Scaled Tetsusaiga form)

Tetsusaiga - Inuyasha's sword

Kappa - a water imp/demon

Koishii - a term of endearment for a loved one; basically "beloved" or "darling"

Koi - a term of endearment for a loved one; "love" or "beloved"

* * *

 **A/N I'm actually really not comfortable swearing; I put it in there because it seemed the most natural thing for Inuyasha's reaction, but I don't cuss, and I'm not a huge fan of cussing. There's a time and a place, and it's under times of great duress like, I dunno, getting skewered like this, and it's not every other sentence. And then there's the fact that it's the words "bastard" and "damn". I'm not planning on dropping an F-bomb any time soon, hahah. If it's in the Bible, chances are it'll be used XD**

 **Well, that was a long chapter. Full of angst, with a good smattering of Inukag, because I can. I like angst. Good for the soul, good for the skin. Apply nightly for best results.**

 **BYE HAVE FUN DON'T DIE PLEASE REVIEW LOVE YA'LL BYEEEE**

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 _Currently listening to: Classic - MKTO_


	10. For Who You Love

**Chapter 10**

 _For Who You Love_

* * *

It took over an hour, but eventually Inuyasha was cleaned up, his wounds bound in clean bandages and lying on all of the blankets the inutachi had brought with them. They had set up the camp despite there still being a few hours of sunlight left, subdued and sick to their stomachs with realization that their enemy was one of the worst people possible.

Sesshomaru had left Rin behind. The fact in itself made everyone wary. Why would he leave this girl behind? He pretty much loved her; that he thought to take her with him to begin with told them that much. So what had changed?

A lot, apparently.

"I don't know what's wrong with him," Rin whispered to her bowl of soup, swirling it around with a faraway look. "He's… Not himself. I think it's that sword… Rin has never been afraid of Lord Sesshomaru, but whenever he uses that sword, Rin fears."

"So he's used it before?" Miroku inquired gently, shifting against his tree. Rin nodded solemnly.

"Yes. The first time I saw him use it he…" she swallowed hard, like there was something stuck in her throat. When she spoke again, her voice had risen a pitch. "He killed a mama demon. We knew it was a mama, because all the little babies came out to try and help it, but… She sent them all away. And then… He killed her… All because she scared me away from her den…"

The girl set down her bowl and buried her face in her dress. Sango, her eyes softening, moved beside the girl and wrapped an arm around her far smaller frame, shushing her.

"You were right to be afraid of the sword," Shippo said gravely, watching the two women from where he sat beside the fire as well. "It's called the Kismet Blade, and it possesses anyone who uses it; human, demon, daiyoukai… It's too powerful for anyone now."

Rin looked up at him, her eyes a little red, but suddenly hopeful. "Then… My lord is simply possessed by the sword?"

"I would hardly say 'simply'," Sango muttered under her breath, offering the girl her son. Rin took Hirohito, beaming. "He's very powerful even without the Blade."

"But that means that he was not in control of his actions," Rin said, her tone suddenly light as she rocked the little baby in her arms. "Rin knew her lord would never do that normally!"

Miroku and Sango shot one another a skeptical look. From what they'd known of Sesshomaru, it was likely he would have killed animals without reason before. Then again, Rin had traveled with him for far longer than any of them had known him… Save Inuyasha. They'd known one another his entire life, and they'd never been friendly.

The thought made Miroku glance over to the shady bushes where he was laid. Kagome was kneeling in the dirt with her back to them, her upper body resting on the same makeshift bed Inuyasha was on. Though she lay there, the monk could see her eyes were open, staring avidly at the half demon's clawed hand entwined with her own. She had not moved from that place for a few hours now. Miroku winced at the memory of how close she was to hyperventilating, how she refused to let go of the hanyou's limp body until Sango held her in a reassuring hug. Miroku knew that he'd have never been able to move the younger man otherwise, and he looked back to his lovely wife in gratitude. Sango shot him a confused glance. She obviously was not on the same train of thought as he was.

The sun was almost fully set by now, the only remnants of it's light being the quickly darkening purple sky. Here and there, bright stars were making their appearance. All was silent in the little clearing filled with yellow firelight and darkened figures. Sango had told Shippo to bring a bowl of soup to Kagome, which she accepted, but did not drink. It sat forgotten by her leg as she continued to stare into the face of the injured man. It wasn't just Kagome who was tense, either. Everyone was tense. Waiting for something to happen. Waiting to be attacked by a demon who smelled the fresh blood of a hanyou, attacked by Sesshomaru, waiting for Inuyasha to wake.

Eventually, all the waiting and worrying exhausted Shippo and Rin as both lay their heads down and were quickly asleep. Sango had moved beside her husband, sitting comfortably between his legs against his chest with her baby in her arms and herself in her husband's. Both their eyes were closed.

Kagome blinked, and before she knew it, her eyes were closing too.

 _ **} } }{ }{}{}{}{ }{ { {**_

"Kagome…?"

She jerked bolt upright. Had she really fallen asleep? The question slipped her mind when she realized that Inuyasha was sitting up and looking at her. With a dry sob, she flung herself onto his neck, and he hissed in pain. "Oi, git offa me, wench."

She did so cupping his cheek and staring into his eyes. They flickered in the firelight. Judging by the size of the flames, she couldn't have been asleep more than fifteen minutes. "How are you?" she said at last, lost for words that would vocalize her relief.

" _Keh…_ I'm _great_ , just got a hole in my gut is all, nothing crazy," groused the half demon. But for his grumpy tone, Kagome could still see that he was hurting. They were silent for a long moment before Inuyasha looked away. "Sesshomaru's gone, I see."

"Yeah…"

He sniffed the air. "And he left Rin behind?"

"Yeah…"

He looked at her strangely. "Weird." Somehow, she got the feeling he was not referring to Rin and Sesshomaru.

"What?" she asked quietly. Inuyasha's brow furrowed.

"You're… Fine. You don't smell like poison at all. And you're all.." He was struggling for words as much as she was. "You smell funny."

"Funny?" Had this been another situation, she would have been offended. But he was hurt, and he still seemed very concerned. "Funny how?"

"Like, your emotions," he clarified. "They're all over the place. Why?"

Now she was annoyed. His ears pricked forward and eyes widened before going flat against his head at her expression. "'They're all over the place'? Really? You're seriously wondering why I'm all emotional?"

"Well… Yeah, I am, wench." He straightened his shoulders a little bit in an attempt to seem a little more defiant, throwing in an insult to add to the charade, but he curled in on himself once again when her quiet fury washed over him like a wave.

"You just got _impaled_ and you're worrying about my _smell_!" she seethed, gripping his upper arms tightly and glaring. "Unbelievable. You're ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. Don't you get how worried I was? Don't you get how worried I am? And then you wake up and you start worrying about me and how I smell, when you should be worrying about your injuries! Honestly!"

She released his arms and turned away. He wasn't completely surprised to see the tears welling in her eyes. Still didn't mean he liked them. "H-hey, Kagome, don't cry…" He tried, but she shot him another death glare.

"I'm crying because you're an idiot," she grumbled, looking away again.

There was a long silence. All the while, something made Inuyasha's stomach queasy, and yet he was so relieved. He had to tell her. He had to.

"Hey… Kagome?"

"What?" Her voice was little more than a hoarse croak. He swallowed.

"That movie that we saw in your era…"

The woman turned around to look at him, her eyes flashing. "You're not seriously going to talk about a movie, are you Inuyasha? Because I swear-"

"No no, wait, hear me out," he said, a little fearfully. Kagome slumped back onto the blankets and bushes with a huff, but Inuyasha felt it was safe to continue. "In that movie… The guy got wounded by the enemy, right? And then… The woman he… She got shot and killed, right?"

"Yes?" Kagome looked at Inuyasha curiously. He was looking at the fire, his lower lip trembling.

"She died in his arms… And he couldn't do anything to save her." Kagome reached forward and slowly brushed the white hair out of his face, where it was falling. "Kagome, I…" He sighed.

"Did that movie really bother you that much?" she asked after a moment, her voice softer than before. Inuyasha glanced at her and looked away.

"It… It's absolutely terrifying, you know?" he said softly, looking dazedly at the fire with his head lolling against the tree behind him. Kagome removed her hand. "I know that you're okaa-san and the old coot were saying… That I should…" he gulped, blinking suddenly over-bright eyes and voice cracking. "But I'm not strong enough, Kagome. I can't protect you. You're wounded, and I couldn't stop it."

There had been only one time when Kagome had truly watched Inuyasha cry. It had been when she, Sango, and Miroku had supposedly died from poison and smoke inhalation, only saved by Myoga's quick action. Then, his tears had been of relief: tears that were there one moment, dried the next, a small action that betrayed his pride. But now, they were pouring down his cheeks, his face twisting into an ugly grimace as his breath came in short, gasping sobs.

"Inuyasha," Kagome whispered, raising a hand to touch his shoulder. "You don't-"

"You don't get it, do you?" he blubbered unabashedly, closing his eyes in a vain attempt to stop the flow. "You don't get h-how _fragile_ you are. I've w-watched more men d-die than you can im-magine. I've watched the life leave their eyes, and when Sesshomaru hurt y-you…" He took a deep, shuddering breath. "I couldn't st-top him… I couldn't s-save the only w-woman in the world I… That I lo-..."

Kagome was crying herself now, crying out of the overwhelming sense of empathy she felt for the poor man before her. The man who had been a pariah to mankind since childhood, who would rather die than lose a fight, a man who fought tooth and nail against every enemy and feeling he's ever met of felt. The man who really was little more than a lost, lonely, scared, scarred boy. Biting her lip, she wrapped her arms around Inuyasha's shoulders, pulling him to her chest and running her hand down his hair, from the top of his head to the small of his back, hushing him. He didn't listen to her, however, continuing to ramble on.

"I'm freaking _terrified_ you're going to d-die, Kagome. I keep waking up in the m-middle of the night th-thinking you are. I've got n-nightm-mares where you all dissappea-ar and leave m-m-me alone. I can't… I can't ask you to marry such a puh-pathetic _wretch_ as m-me… Who can't even protect y-you, and I-"

" _Stop talking_."

It was a sharp order, not a suggestion of any sort. Despite the tears on her face, something in her mind had snapped and… And she was _angry_. "Just stop talking. Do you honestly not understand _anything_ , Inuyasha? Jeeze, I'm not…" She struggled for the words to explain herself, searching desperately for something that would knock some sense into the shaking form she held so tightly. "Inuyasha, how do you think _I_ feel when you go rushing into battle just to keep me safe?"

He stilled, one of his wracking sobs fading into a shaky breath. She redoubled her grip on him, determined to make him listen. To _make_ him understand. "I am _terrified_ when you run off to fight something like that. How do you think I'd feel if you died for me?"

"But that's-"

"No, that's no different from what I did. You have your weaknesses _just as much_ as I do. You've got your limits and you are _going_ to meet your match someday. Yeah, maybe you're _not_ strong enough! You've got to realize that _that isn't such a bad thing,_ you _idiot_! It makes you _human_ to be _scared_ , and it make you _human_ to want to be _strong_ and... And _protect,_ just as much as it makes you a _demon_.

"Inuyasha," she roughly took his head in her hands and forced him to look at her, brown eyes blazing in the reflected firelight with a ferocity he rarely saw there. " _I don't care_ if you can't protect me. Don't you _get_ that? I love you just as you are, and I don't care if I get hurt for you just as much as you don't care if you get hurt of me. You need to _grow up_ and _realize_ that!"

Silence fell. Heavy, untranslatable silence. Kagome couldn't read the expression on his tear-stained face, couldn't tell if she had gotten her point across or if… _Had she just ruined everything_? A thrill of terror shot through her as the bad thought struck, just as bad thoughts so often did in hindsight. _Oh no_. Had she just scared him away, even if he was still in her arms? She didn't think so, she had always been this blunt with him before on their journeys before, but... But… It _had_ been three years, and there _had_ been things that changed. What if…

Her reverie was interrupted by the warm, rough hands tightening around her wrists. Inuyasha's eyes had never once left her face, flickering with the firelight as they looked in one of her eyes and flashed to the next, back and forth, searching. "Kagome…" His voice was faint and fragile, a feather-light tone that could break like ice or glass, and so, so quiet and painful. "Why… Why would you do that for me?"

"You really are an idiot," she whispered back, pressing her forehead against his and smiling. "You don't die for something you don't love. And I love you. Don't you get that?"

Inuyasha opened his mouth and closed it again, another tear running down his face. "I really don't deserve you. You know that?"

"And yet, here I am." Kagome chuckled humorlessly, almost nervous. "It's not about what you deserve or don't deserve. I don't deserve you, either, but that doesn't stop me from loving you. Never will."

"Things really haven't changed, haven't they?" sighed the half demon, screwing his eyes shut and smiling despite the tears. He pulled Kagome closer to him, drinking in her scent, savoring her presence and the warmth suddenly growing in his chest.

"Wouldn't want it any other way," she answered with another breathy chuckle that hid a sob of her own, drying his eyes with her sleeves before kissing his forehead. He looked up at her. His expression was so sad, yet so tranquil, and so simply adoring it made her heart flutter at the idea that he would look at _her_ like that. _Her_ , and _no one_ else.

Shifting so that he was supporting his own weight, he lifted his head and continued to stare down at her with that vaguely content look. He was close. _So_ very close. So she kissed him. It was brief, little more than them touching lips, but it was warm, and it was real. Kagome sighed happily and pulled away after a moment to be greeted by his slack-jawed, half-lidded, detached sort of expression. "Inuyasha?" she said, blinking.

"That..." he breathed faintly, looking dazedly at something above her head. His eyes were out of focus. "That was really… Nice…"

A breathy, nervous sort of giggle broke past her throat and he turned his spacy gaze once again to her. "Would you… Would you like another?" she asked. Slowly, he nodded, an idiotic sort of grin crossing his lips before she kissed him once again.

They sat there for a long while, quiet, sharing secret kisses and not speaking, holding the other close: the half demon the futuristic girl, the girl the injured hanyo.

"Kagome," Inuyasha mumbled after a little while as the two came up for air. His eyes were closed, ears pricked forward, like he were listening in a dream. "I know I said… I don't deserve you. But… But…" He opened his eyes, brow furrowed with worry, as though he were scared of what he was going to ask. "If we make it out of this… If we beat Sesshomaru… Will you… Will you live with me? Will you… Will you marry me?"

Tears filled her eyes, and she chuckled once again as she felt the strongest rush of love and affection for this poor, wounded, scared boy. It was a little silly, she thought, that he had asked her in such in unsure, hesitant way. She had, after all, returned to the Sengoku Jidai for a reason, and that reason was to be with him. But she smiled nonetheless, kissing him lightly once again and whispering into his shoulder, "Did you really need to ask? Of course I will."

Sometimes, Fate was a funny thing. And sometimes, despite how it could fight against itself, Fate simply could not change what it wove. And this was one of those things that the Kismet Blade simply could not break, even if the two figures by the fire didn't know it: the bond between the young woman from the far future, and the half demon she loved.

What neither of them knew, either, were the four pairs of eyes that watched them carefully, barely more than slits of white and brown or green, the satisfied and knowing smirks of their owners hidden behind sleeves or blankets.

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Inutachi - the group consisting of Kagome, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo; often translated to "Inuyasha and co." in the manga

Daiyoukai - a powerful demon/youkai

Hanyou - a half demon/youkai

* * *

 **A/N Well... Sorry, that was rushed. I wanted to get it done, and the scene with Kagome explaining her feelings was written almost immediately after I had the chapter outlines, so I was struggling to figure out how to connect that part to the previous parts written. Oh well, hope you like it? I mean, it's Inukag, so... Yeah. Anyway have fun, don't die, love yourselves, and please, _PLEASE_ leave a review! They feed my soul, and I want to know if you guys are even liking the story at all XD If you are reading this, you're one of the few people who actually care about what I have to say or write. Thanks, I love you guys..**

 **Mmkay... Yeah.**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: While My Guitar Gently Weeps - Regina Spektor (yES I watched Kubo and the Two Strings. Shut up, it's good.)_


	11. Tasted so Right

**Chapter 11**

 _Tasted So Right_

* * *

That hadn't been what he'd expected.

He wasn't even sure it had been what he _wanted_.

Sesshomaru raised a shaky hand to his face, covering his eyes. His breath was coming out ragged and unsteady. If he wasn't careful, Jakken would most likely start to suspect something. Not that there wasn't something worth suspecting of already. He glanced down at the Kismet Blade. It was set on the rock before him, looking innocent and unsuspecting. It looked like any normal sword would or should.

So why, _why_ was it that every time he touched it now, he felt uneasy?

He closed his eyes again. The memory was as fresh as the blood shed. His brother's - no, _half_ brother's - face, slack with silent agony as Sesshomaru thrust his hand through his gut, twisted in terror as he watched that human woman he, Sesshomaru, knew the younger man loved collapse and roll away. The blood that spilled from the wound as he continued to fight, continued to resist, clawing his way over to the woman.

Rin's petrified expression when she looked at him…

Never had a single look so wounded him as that. Never had the bottom of his stomach dropped out from him with shame than before that look. It scared him. He, Lord Sesshomaru, son of the Inu-no-Taisho, heir to the Western Lands, was scared of what had gone through that little girl's mind that had made her face him with such an expression. So, like a coward, he ran.

He turned back to the Kismet Blade, and once again, that feeling of unease stole over him. Inukimi's warning had seemed to ring in his ears more often than usual in the past few days, when things had escalated so quickly, just because of a single sword. _If one were now to attempt to use the blade, they would almost certainly become corrupted, possessed by the blade itself. Sesshomaru, whatever you are planning, do not use that blade._

Yet, he had ignored the advice instead relying on his own experience, depending upon his own power and judgement. He chuckled darkly. _I've certainly made a job of this one, haven't I, father?_

He stopped suddenly, thought suddenly striking him. _No.._. No, there was no _way_ that _he_ , Sesshomaru of the Western Lands, a daiyoukai of incredible strength and cunning, could have been possessed by something as simple as a sword. No matter if it had been forged by and for gods. He had overcome Tokijin, had he not? Certainly, the Kismet Blade would not overcome him, like Tokijin had it's creator. Not so long as _he_ had any say in it.

And he _did_ have a say in it, right? He wanted to kill his weak half demon brother, right?

 _Right_?

Yes… Yes, of _course_ he wanted to kill the man. He'd sworn to do the deed since the day the half breed was born, had he not? He didn't want to seem like he was backing down now that he'd committed to it for so long. He had an honorable reputation to uphold, and he refused to let anything marr it like the half demon did his father's, simply by existing. Sesshomaru was simply going to blot out a disgusting stain on his father's name by… By killing the fool.

 _By killing the fool…_

Sometimes, when he was younger, Sesshomaru had believed words and thoughts had a taste to them. They could be bittersweet like when his thoughts lingered on his father or - though he would never admit it aloud - Kagura, one of Naraku's incarnations whom he had failed to save from death. Or they could be sour, like when his thoughts fell on old enemies and duels that were left unfinished and unwon.

But the thought about killing the hanyou? It just tasted all _wrong_. It tasted wrong in his _head_ , it tasted wrong on his _tongue_.

Sesshomaru stood and walked to the rock where lay the Kismet Blade, reaching out for its delicate hilt. He hesitated a moment, his pale hand hovering over the gilded hilt, marveling once more at how wrong the thought tasted. But Sesshomaru was not a man to go back on his word, and without any, he picked up the Kismet Blade.

With the soft silver glow fighting with the light of the moon, and the comfortable weight of the Blade in his hand, suddenly? The thought, the desire and knowledge that he had to kill the half breed Inuyasha, had to cleanse his father's name, had to strengthen the Kismet Blade…

That thought suddenly tasted _so_ right.

* * *

 **A/N *thoughtful chin scratching* Sorry, short chapter. But it's pretty important.  
**

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Inu-no-Taisho - a title given to Sesshomaru's father; "General of the dogs"

Daiyoukai - a very powerful youkai/demon

Tokijin - one of Sesshomaru's past swords

Hanyou - a half demon/youkai

* * *

 _Currently listening to : A Christmas Story (it is, like, a movie, you flop!)  
_


	12. Completely Gone

**Chapter 12**

 _Completely Gone_

* * *

Nobody questioned the way Kagome and Inuyasha were sleeping the next morning, with the young woman's arms wrapped around the half demon's neck, and his arm lying across her shoulders. There were, however, a few knowing smirks shared between monk and taijiya. Kagome and Inuyasha didn't bring it up, either (though Kagome was certainly a bit pink in the face when she looked up to see Inuyasha's, only a couple inches away, and all her friends watching).

Inuyasha, for his part, had healed surprisingly well through the night. His wound was now completely closed, though very tender, and there was a distinctly sickly odor one could smell near him as Kagome started to change the dressings. She had brought some new ointments and medicines with her from her last trip through the Well, and was very careful about putting it on the hanyou's injury. He winced even at her light touch, though he tried to hide it.

"Lady Kagome, would you care for some tea?" Miroku asked her as she worked.

"Yes, please," she said with a little shiver. It was a chilly morning out here in the mountain woods by the stream, even with the Fire Rat robe Inuyasha had thrown carelessly over her shoulders.

" _Keh_! You guys are wimps. It ain't cold out," scoffed Inuyasha. Kagome raised and eyebrow at him, and he looked away with a little embarrassed huff. With his kosode hanging around his waist and Fire Rat draped over Kagome's shoulders, there was nothing protecting him from the chill, or from the fact that at the very least Kagome could see the goose flesh covering his arms, stomach, and neck. He was undeniably cold. Kagome snorted a little with laughter as she pulled the clean bandages tight. _Typical Inuyasha._

Rin brought Kagome a cup of hot tea, which she took gratefully. She had also brought a cup for Inuyasha, who also took it with a grunt of thanks. He winced as he lifted his arm. Kagome looked at the little girl over the rim of her cup. Actually, she was hardly able to be considered a "little" girl by now, Kagome realized for almost the hundredth time in the past week or so since she'd returned to the Sengoku Jidai.

Kagome frowned a little and lowered her cup.

"Rin, are you okay?"

Rin jumped a little, her eyes widening a little and forcing a falsely sweet smile onto her face. "Rin is fine, miss Kagome," she chirped. Something in her tone was off. Something in her eyes was off. She had been staring at Inuyasha's freshly bound wound with something funny in her expression, like a deep sadness or fear. Kagome cocked her head to the side.

"You don't seem fine," she said softly. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Rin's smile faltered and slipped slowly from her face. She didn't answer, instead glancing back at Inuyasha's stomach almost unconsciously. The half demon saw the look at well and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Look kid, I'm fine, see?" He spread his arms wide without thinking and hissed with pain. Kagome scowled at him, less concerned about his pain, more worried about his wound opening again, and the fact that rather than helping the situation, he had inadvertently made things much worse.

Rin's eyes were filling with bright pearly tears and she turned away to go back to the newly rekindled fire.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome seethed, grabbing one of his ears and yanking on it. He gave what could only be described as a yelp and doubled over.

" _Ow_! Wench, what are you-!"

"You've got no idea what's going on, do you?" Kagome hissed into his ear, glancing at the rest of the inutachi staring at them with curiosity. "After you passed out, Sango and Miroku explained to Rin that Sesshomaru's probably being possessed by the Kismet Blade. She's obviously very upset that he's not running under his own power, and she probably feels a little guilty about what happened to you because she couldn't stop him."

"It ain't her fault!" Inuyasha said. His eyes were watering a little between the combined pain of his gut and Kagome's fingers pulling his ear. "We know that! How the heck was she supposed to stop him when he would probably turn on her and kill her?"

"It's been over three years, my friend," said Miroku, who had wandered over to the angry whispering and now stood solemnly above the couple. "Do you honestly not understand the fact that Sesshomaru wouldn't hurt Rin by now? He himself entered Naraku's body to find her rather than kill him from outside. He's protected her for so long, brought her gifts while she was living with Kaede. He loves her like she were his own child."

"Keh!" Kagome released the half demon's ear, and he sat straight, rubbing it a little. "Let's say for the sake of argument that Sesshomaru wouldn't kill the kid," he groused. "If he's being possessed by the Blade, he can't control whether he kills her or not. If the Blade wants the kid's soul, it's gonna try and get her soul."

"That doesn't stop Rin from feeling like she could have done something to stop him!" Kagome said.

"I can hear you all, you know," said Rin from by the fire, looking a little grumpy and embarrassed.

"Look kid, it ain't your fault I wasn't strong enough to ki-" he paused, glancing at Kagome's expression, which was dangerous. He'd almost said "kill Sesshomaru". "Uhh, strong enough to… Beat… Sesshomaru." He shook his head. "I made a mistake, and I've made it before. But it ain't your fault I'm hurt."

"And," Sango add softly. "It's not your fault Sesshomaru is possessed either, Rin. He obviously found the Blade a while before he took you away from the village. There's nothing you could have done, so don't worry."

Rin nodded and looked down. Her cheeks were flushed from all the attention, and her eyes were watery.

"By the way," Sango said in a suddenly more important tone, "I think right now, while Inuyasha's out of commission and Rin's with us, our biggest priority is to make sure we get her safely back to the village."

"I agree," nodded Miroku solemnly.

"The whole reason we started on this stupid quest was to get Rin, right?" Inuyasha grumped, at long last pulling on his kosode and tying his hakama.

"Before the Blade, yes," Sango chuckled.

"Still can't believe we didn't even get past that gosh dang mountain youkai," muttered the hanyou. The inutachi paused for a moment, Inuyasha stopping his tying, Kagome halting from putting her medicines away, Sango's hand stilling on the kettle she was pulling from the fire. Each of them bowed their heads at the thought of the ancient creature.

"There was nothing we could have done," said Miroku softly, raising his fingers to his face in a small prayer.

"Like hell there was nothing we coulda done," growled Inuyasha, giving a final yank of his hakama tie and standing. "I shoulda known to get our butts moving faster ever since we learned about the Blade, or I shoulda tried to… I dunno, something."

"There's no point in blaming yourself for what's already happened," Kagome said, standing as well and offering the man his Fire Rat. She helped him put it on, running her hands down his arms with a sad look on her face after he tucked it into his hakama as well. "It was out of our control."

" _Keh…_ "

As they had made camp rather hastily last night, there wasn't a lot to pack before they started to make their way to the road leading to the village, Hirohito on Miroku's back, Shippo striding beside Rin, Inuyasha grimacing and grunting now and again with pain. It was all rather quiet, with only the sounds of the breeze in the tall trees and their heavy footsteps. Quiet, and somewhat awkward.

"You know what," Kagome said as they paused by the roadside. "Do you think we should go over to the mountain youkai before we head back to the village? Just to, you know… Pay respects?"

"I think that's a good idea," Sango nodded, glancing to the west where the mountain youkai's body still lay, a million tons of rock and age. "And we can see if there's anything we can find out about the Blade around it, like wounds or something."

"Just hold on a second!" said Inuyasha loudly, straightening and pointing at the two women. "I thought we'd literally _just_ agreed that Rin was priority one."

"Rin doesn't mind," piped up the girl brightly, tapping Inuyasha on the arm. He pulled back at the contact, looking surly. "I can help you all with investigating the youkai if you want, actually. Since I was there and all."

Miroku looked heastiant, opening his mouth to say something, but closing it again with a sigh and gazing imploringly at his wife. "Are you sure, Sango?" he asked in a thin voice.

Sango's expression softened. "I miss the girls too," she said gently, running her thumb along her husband's cheek. He smiled a little, and she lowered her voice so the rest couldn't hear. "But for all we know, Sesshomaru could try the village next. Inuyasha and Kagome seem to be his biggest targets, and if we lead him to the village…" She sighed. Miroku nodded and turned to Inuyasha with a grin.

"So sorry, my friend, but it seems you've been outvoted."

The hanyou bared his teeth in a grimace and stomped away, muttered obscenities barely audible from under his rough growl. The inutachi shared a collective look of exasperation, their eyes all saying " _same old Inuyasha_ ". At least he was storming away in the direction of the mountain youkai.

"I think," Shippo said, "This would be one of those 'let sleeping dogs lie' cases where we just let him be grumpy, huh?"

"Mm-hmm," nodded Kagome, shouldering her quiver and making to follow. He'd get over it soon enough.

Their walk this time was punctuated by snide comments, laughter, teasing, and an undeniable underlying nervous energy. It was somewhat unsettling, but the threat of the Kismet Blade felt like it was breathing down their necks more than Naraku really did; a constant and ever looming presence that they attempted to cover up with a sense of normalcy. It worked rather well, actually, but it was still there.

"-and then Sora decided that jumping really wasn't a good idea, so she backed down and told me to go first, but I wasn't about to jump either 'cause that cliff was really tall and I couldn't tell how deep the water was. So then Mari and Isobe said that if we didn't jump they were gonna push us off and-" Shippo was talking up a storm, filling in the empty air with a warm, if slightly annoying chatter about some odd adventure he'd had on his last fox demon exam.

"I thought you told me Sora liked flying," Miroku said, humoring the child.

"Oh yeah, but flying and falling are two totally different things," dismissed the kitsune before continuing. "Anyway, Mari and-"

Inuyasha huffed a little and shutting his eyes, looking sour. He didn't shove his hands into his sleeves because Kagome was holding one of them, and if he was completely honest with himself he loved it, but he was too peeved to admit it even to himself at the moment.

"Guys?" Sango piped up after a few more minutes of Shippo's epic yarn. "What's with the smoke?"

Every head turned in different directions. "Where?" Rin asked. Sango pointed to the left of the road they were on, to a growing column of smoke.

"There's a village there," Miroku said sharply.

"Get on, Kagome." Inuyasha was crouching near the ground in an obvious bid for her to climb onto his back.

"But your wound," she started. He scoffed.

"Doesn't matter. Doesn't hurt. This is more important anyway. Just get on."

She did so, and they bounded off, leaving Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Rin, and Hirohito behind in the dust. Had this been during their time together previously, Sango would have requested her demon cat Kirara simply transform and climb onto her, flying alongside the hanyou and his human. However, since their time together, Kirara had gone on with Sango's younger brother Kohaku, and was unavailable. So they ran instead, with Shippo transforming and carrying Rin, who carried the baby in turn. They weren't quite as fast, but they didn't lose sight of the hanyou and his woman, following the growing smoke and steadily increasing scent of blood.

The majority of the inutachi came to a gasping halt a few minutes later, windswept and out of breath, looking for Kagome and Inuyasha.

They didn't look for long.

Inuyasha was standing in front of Kagome with one arm thrown out before her and the other wielding his Tetsusaiga. Kagome had drawn her bow, an arrow aimed directly at the heart of a white figure holding a beautiful and delicately smithed, glowing white sword. Around them, a decent sized village was in flame, the dead bodies of men, women, children, and animals scattered across their ground like dolls - broken and tossed aside, cut down undoubtedly by the silvery Kismet Blade. There were a few screams coming from inside the burning huts of people who had not made it out quite in time.

" _Hiraikotsu_!"

Sango hurled the great bone boomerang with all her might over her friends' heads. It flew true to its master's aim, right at the figure in white and fur and cold amber. With superhuman speed true to his own demonic nature, Sesshomaru knocked the weapon out of the air so it landed harmlessly in the dirt behind him, and lunged at Inuyasha and Kagome. Scooping her up, Inuyasha leapt away, barely avoiding being impaled.

Miroku reached into his robes and snatched up a few sacred sutras, throwing them at the speedy Sesshomaru. One of them planted itself on his arm, crackling with the monk's spiritual energy, blue and white lighting flashing and burning pale demonic flesh.

He did not even turn to look at them. Instead, he furiously swung the Kismet Blade once again at Inuyasha and Kagome, who similarly threw themselves out of the way. A wave of blinding white youki flew from the god blade, blowing between the two sets of fighters, entirely too close for comfort. The rush of demonic wind following it nearly blew Sango and Miroku off their feet, just as strong if not stronger than Inuyasha's Kaze no Kizu. Shippo had run away before then with Rin and Hirohito, searching for a safer place to protect them.

Inuyasha dropped Kagome on her own feet, screamed something unintelligible, and ran forward, slamming Tetsusaiga against the Blade. The ring of metal against metal was like a bell, followed quickly by another, and another. While the daiyoukai was distracted, Sango sped towards her Hiraikotsu where it had landed, snatching it up and flinging it once again at Sesshomaru's head. As though he could sense it, the daiyoukai ducked down once again and kicked his half demon opponent squarely in the stomach. Inuyasha gasped, the blow knocking the air from his lungs and causing a huge amount of pain as his still healing wound was reopened. He froze in momentarily blinding agony, right in the path of a demon killing weapon.

" _OSUWARI_!"

Kagome's shout caused his face to slam into dirt, but it literally stopped his head from being severed from his neck. The great bone boomerang flew back to a horrified looking Sango, who caught it and clapped a hand to her mouth with wide eyes. She had _almost_ just _killed_ one of her best friends…

The morbid realization could not be lingered upon for long, because Sesshomaru was back, swinging the Kismet Blade, which was this time aimed at Sango and Miroku. Another flash of blinding youki flying straight for their own heads made Miroku shove Sango and himself to the ground to avoid it. The wind tearing through the air above them blew them away like they were leaves in a gale, throwing them twenty feet from where they had been standing only a few moments previous. When they stopped rolling and got to their feet, Miroku and Sango both had blood running down their faces and fearful expressions despite their shaky, offensive stances.

Sesshomaru had once again turned his attention to another target. This time, it was Kagome. The pull of the Beads of Subjugation had by now dissipated, but Inuyasha was only just pulling himself to his hands and knees. Blood was once again beginning to stain the front and back of his Fire Rat robes, not as thick as the flow of yesterday's fight, but there nonetheless. His head snapped up, ears pricked and terror glazing his eyes as Sesshomaru's voice cracked over him like a whip. "Shall I kill the woman you love, half breed? Take her soul, feed it to the Kismet Blade that it might grow strong and kill you? Or perhaps simply killing her will break your soul as it is?"

" _NO_!" The returning, deathly frightened cry was followed by a barrage of adamantite spears, like a hundred diamond arrows bent on death, or rather, bent on protecting the dark haired human woman. The Kongo Souha. Sesshomaru had to come to a screeching halt as the spears came to a level with him, not wanting to be impaled. Inuyasha, with hardly a breath's time, was on top of him, swinging Tetsusaiga with a feral snarl. Sesshomaru brought the Kismet Blade up just in time for the swords to clash with that bell-like ringing, preventing him from being cleaved in two by the mad hanyou currently suspending in the air, held up by the howling demonic wind flowing from where the two swords met.

They stayed that way for a few more moments, both equally matched when Sesshomaru, with a power that was not his own, flung the half demon away. The hanyou thudded against the ground twenty feet away, face down and gasping.

The inutachi felt their stomachs drop, their heartbeats falter.

The Tetsusaiga was standing, quivering tip down in the grassy ground between the two battling blood brothers, several yards away from Inuyasha's hand.

With a wild cry halfway between a scream and a sob, Kagome released her tensed bowstring. The fuchsia pink glow of her sacred arrow flashed as the projectile flew true to its aim, right at Sesshomaru's heart. He moved, but not fast enough. The arrowhead buried itself in his shoulder with a grunt of pain, the spiritual power burning through his skin so the smell of charring demonic flesh entwined with the smell of the dead and dying in the village. He yanked it out, clutching the new wound and looking aghast. _Had he really just been…?_

Kagome sprinted to her hanyou's side the moment the arrow flew, flinging herself onto the ground beside him despite the pleas of her friends. "Inuyasha," she said in a low and worried voice, her hands hovering above his shoulder blades. "I'm right here Inuyasha, just hold on a second, I'll get Tetsusaiga!"

She made to get up when a clawed hand shot up as if it were one of her own arrows, grabbing her wrist and holding it like a vise. " _Don't_!" His voice was strangled, and his breathing heavy. Kagome kneeled back onto the grass, despite every cell of her brain screaming at her to run the opposite direction away from him, to grab the Tetsusaiga and protect herself and her friends from sudden, consuming demonic blood, and pushed Inuyasha over onto his back.

Her stomach clenched in terror when she saw the jagged purple markings on his face. Then it suddenly relaxed.

"Inuyasha?" Her own voice was a nervous squeak as the inu-hanyou sat up, staring at his half brother out of baleful amber eyes. _Amber_ … Not eyes of deadly fire and ice, but his normal coloration. He turned that golden gaze on a dumbstruck Kagome, scowling and looking a little scared. Surprised. He obviously had been expecting the same thing she had, expected to become a feral, mindless killing machine like he had every time before when he'd lost his sword.

"Whatever you do, Kagome," he said in a gravely croak, sliding his hand into hers from her wrist, " _Do not let me go_."

Kagome swallowed hard and nodded, redoubling her grip on his own hand.

Sesshomaru straightened slowly, still clutching his wounded right shoulder and holding the Kismet Blade in his right hand. His lips cracked in a pointed, entirely un-Sesshomaru-like smile. "So, you've turned into a full demon out of pure desperation, with your mind only just held together by that human woman. How pathetic," he spat, still leering oddly.

In fact, now that Kagome had a clear view of his face, there was something _very_ odd about it. There wasn't anything different about the way it looked, really: he still had the same incarnadine demonic markings there on his regal, high cheekbones. His chiseled jaw was set as it normally was when facing his younger half demon brother. His brows were just as delicately thin and dark as ever, and the same silvery white hair framed his eyes. Rather, it was his expression that was different. His expression, and those startlingly beautiful amber eyes, so like his half brother's. They were… Sort of glazed over, darkened in a way, like he were staring at them from under a layer of cobwebs, or through a tinted glass window.

Sango and Miroku came to a halt beside their two friends, staring at Inuyasha a moment with trepidation before settling into their defensive stances, gazes set solidly on Sesshomaru and his strange, misty gaze.

"His eyes…" Kagome said out loud, despite knowing that each of them had already noticed the strange sight.

"He's completely gone. His mind's been entirely taken over by the Kismet Blade," Sango answered solemnly, ducking her chin down and glancing at her companions. "He probably doesn't even recognize us."

Completely possessed?

 _Sesshomaru?_

What had happened to the powerful daiyoukai, the one who had commanded the Tokijin sword when it had possessed the mind and body of its very creator only the day previous? The being who refused - after being taken advantage of once before - to allow himself to become a pawn in Naraku's game as he gathered the Shikon no Tama's scattered fragments?

Then again… None of those things was an all-powerful God Blade, filled with souls hell-bent on freeing themselves from their godly prison. It was simply the fact that while Sesshomaru was powerful, even his will bent to the ancient power of the Inukami-sama and the thousands of evil souls inside of the Kismet Blade.

In typical Inuyasha fashion, the half demon bared his fangs and stared at his blood brother, still amber eyes flashing with ire. "I don't care if his mind's there of not," he growled out, tightening his grip on Kagome's hand. "But he found the damned thing in the first place, and he went out and used it. He's killed a village of innocent humans and several innocent demons to boot." He tensed, then screamed, " _I won't forgive him_!"

Thrusting his unnaturally long and razor sharp claws into his newly reopened wound was probably a bad idea, but Inuyasha wasn't known for his common sense. Kagome let go of his hand and threw her arms around his neck as his youki swirled, focusing on those bloody claws now raised high in the air. " _HIJIN KESSOU!_ "

With the speed of a starving man seeing bread, Sesshomaru cut the bloody blades of demonic power out of the air as they flew at him. They continued past him, leaving long lacerations in his pale arms by the time they landed in the ground behind him, the power of the Hijin Kessou having grown along with Inuyasha's purified demonic blood.

Pulling Kagome onto his back, Inuyasha lunged at Sesshomaru, who once again barely made it out of the path of certain death, this time in the form of four flashes of glowing youki. Undeterred, Inuyasha spun around and struck again. The elder demon growled - something else totally unbecoming to his character - and swung the Kismet Blade. Inuyasha rolled across the ground, avoiding crushing the woman clinging to his back and holding his mind together as well as having his soul sucked into the god sword.

Again and again they struck out at one another, missing each other by a hair's breadth, Inuyasha's greatly magnified attacks landing here and again, leaving a growing number of wounds. Sesshomaru managed to catch the half demon with a few strikes of his own, but they were all from his demonic power rather than the Kismet Blade. Sango and Miroku helped where they could, throwing a sutra here, hurling the Hiraikotsu there, always preventing the Blade from hitting their friends. Kagome was preoccupied trying to keep her hold on Inuyasha and not be a big target or hindrance, but she did manage to shoot a few arrows when Inuyasha retreated to catch his breath.

This was one of those times, both brothers stepping back and glaring, huffing from exertion, sweat pouring down their faces. Even demons got tired, it seemed. Sesshomaru sneered once again, baring his fangs and clenching his fist, looking more like his hanyou brother than himself. It was time.

Kagome was just knocking an arrow onto her bowstring when she jerked to a halt with a gasp. "Kagome?" Inuyasha turned to her with concern as she dropped both bow and arrow, fingers digging into his shoulders. "Kagome!"

There was the smell of burning flesh, subtly different from that of the dead in the slowly dying fire that used to be a village. Like acid on human flesh. Sango rushed towards her friend seeing what was happening, Miroku following close after. It wasn't pretty; four long gashes were slowly eating away at Kagome's back and through her kimono. It was amazing she didn't scream. "Kagome-chan!"

Inuyasha lifted the woman from his back, wide-eyed with horror and fury. Kagome… Was injured… How? _How_? He'd been so _careful_! He thought he'd made sure none of the strikes that had been landed by Sesshomaru had hit her - that they had hit him instead. So how? As though searching for an answer as Sango and Miroku struggled to undo their water skins, he turned back to Sesshomaru, standing twenty feet away with the Kismet Blade in his hand. "You bastard," he growled.

"You're distraught," leered the daiyoukai raising a delicate brow as he referenced the horrified expression on the hanyou's face.

"You're damn right about that!" Inuyasha howled, springing to his feet. He wasn't afraid of his demon blood overpowering his human heart right now. His heart and his inner demon were on the same page this time. "What did you do to her!"

"The poison left in her body had lain dormant until now, when Sesshomaru called upon it," said the demon smoothly, taking a step forward and waving the Blade before him. "She was becoming an issue."

"An _issue_!" Inuyasha, bared his fangs and growled. His voice cracked when he spoke again. "I don't care what the hell you are Sesshomaru. I don't give a damn if your mind is being possessed by that _stupid_ Blade! But you hurt Kagome... I won't forgive you for that!"

"The Kismet Blade does not care if you forgive its vessel or not. After all… You're dead."

In a dazzling flash of light, like that which had killed the old mountain youkai which had for so long harbored and hidden the Kismet Blade, Sesshomaru flew forward, blood spattering the ground and flying through the air as he stopped and straightened. Slowly, as though in slow motion, Inuyasha staggered, slumped over, and fell to his knees. Kagome's stricken face blanched as he fell face first to the earth.

" _INUYASHA-AAA_!"

* * *

 **A/N PSYCH! You THOUGHT I was just gonna do a short update XD So here's a VERY long chapter to make up for the lack of updates here. Also, still not comfortable with the swearing, but... Welp, it's not me, it's Inuyasha :V ALSO, PSYCH you THOUGHT the freaking Japanese honorifics were gone, but you were WRONG, coz I read the manga all the time and it uses the honorifics XD And as for the "I won't forgive him" thing is in reference to HOW MANY TIMES Inuyasha says it in the manga. It's a lot XD  
**

 **To the wonderful guest who recently left a review (as well as all of you guys who read and review, actually), I want to thank you. Some of you have noticed that I TRY (key word there, as I'm not always the best at it) to keep all of the characters, well, in character. As true to Rumiko Takahashi's characters as I can get it. And to those of you who tell me that I do just that, your affirmations mean the world to me.**

 **Thank you.**

 **And to the crazy person still reading, I thank you the most; reading this means that you care, and that's an immense amonut of comfort to a poor, struggling, unmotivated chick.**

 **Merry Christmas, you guys! (and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I still wish you an awesome day) Love ya!**

 **Now, onto the buttload of definitions XD**

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Taijiya - a demon slayer

Hanyou - a half demon/youkai

Kosode - a kimono with small mouthed sleeves

Sengoku Jidai - the Japanese Warring States period; the Feudal Era

Inutaichi - the group of Kagome, Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo; often translated to "Inuyasha and co." in the manga

Hakama - a type of pleated and tied pants

Youkai - a demon/spirit

Tetsusaiga - Inuyasha's sword

Hiraikotsu - Sango's bone boomerang weapon

Kaze no Kizu - "Wind Scar"; "Cutting Wind"

Daiyoukai - a powerful demon/youkai

Osuwari - the term used for telling a dog to sit; "Sit, boy"

Youki - demonic power

Adamantite - an archaic term for an extremely hard substance or mineral (in this case, diamond)

Kongo Souha - "Adamant Barrage"

Tokijin - one of Sesshomaru's past swords

Shikon no Tama - the Jewel of Four Souls; the Sacred Jewel

Inukami-sama - literally "Dog God"

Hijin Kessou - "Blades of blood"

Sankon Tessou - "Iron reaver, soul stealer"

* * *

 _Currently listening to: A Christmas Story_


	13. Godly Kekai

_**~ For pop ~**_

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

 _Godly Kekai_

* * *

He was dead.

He had to be dead.

Why else would he have slumped forward like that, with little to no resistance?

"Inuyasha! _Inuyasha_!" It was all Sango and Miroku could do to hold Kagome in place, trying to dump their water skins down her back, which was still being eaten away at by poison. She didn't seem to feel it though. She had completely lost any and all self control, thrashing around in their grips so most of the water missed her completely and splashed pointlessly against the ground. "Let me go! _Let me go_! _Inuyasha-aaaa!_ "

Sesshomaru straightened, looked cooly at the group of huddled humans, and wiped his claws against his kimono.

They were covered in blood.

Kagome's thrashing subsided a moment as she registered the fact. Sesshomaru's claws were covered in blood. The Kismet Blade was completely free of any new blood. Hoping against all hope that her hanyou wasn't dead, that he had merely fainted or passed out or something like that, Kagome redoubled her efforts to free herself from her well meaning friends. Taken aback by her sudden return to writhing, their grips slipped just long enough for her to escape. She snatched up her fallen bow and arrow and staggered to where Inuyasha lay prone, drawing the string and pointing it straight at Sesshomaru's heart. Any thought that she probably couldn't do much to hurt the daiyoukai, any doubt that she might miss, none of them even crossed her mind. Only one thing had clicked into her muddled reason. _I must protect him. If there's even the slightest chance that he's alive, I_ must _protect him. I cannot let him die._

Sesshomaru's expression was flat. Dispassionate. Like he felt no emotion whatsoever. Vaguely, Kagome remembered what he had said. Or rather...

"You're not in control, are you, Sesshomaru," she croaked out, lower lip trembling. It was a statement, not a question. As though in confirmation, Sesshomaru - or whatever it was controlling him - lifted the sword in front of his face, straight up and down, and slowly nodded once. "Why do you want to kill Inuyasha so much, huh? What's he done to you?"

"The Kismet Blade need not explain such things to you, woman." The Blade was speaking through Sesshomaru's mouth, but the inutachi could have sworn on their lives that a low thrum came from the sword itself as well, humming along with its daiyoukai host's clear baritone. It paused, and added as though in realization, "You are in possession of a strong soul as well, aren't you, woman? So die."

Kagome let her arrow fly. She might as well not have done anything. It whooshed harmlessly through the air that had milliseconds before held her target. There was a blow to her gut that knocked the wind out of her with a hearty _oof_ , and suddenly, the sky was the ground, and then the ground hit her from behind, and then everything was black before flashing back into color. She rolled over her shoulder, tumbling a few times before coming to a stop, lungs heaving desperately for the oxygen that had been forced from them. She blinked the black spots dancing in her vision away just as Sango grabbed her shoulders, painfully.

Sesshomaru was standing over Inuyasha. With that weird leer, he kicked the hanyou in the face. Grunting with pain, he rolled away, coming to a halt for a moment before being kicked again in the side by the daiyoukai. Blood ran down from under his hairline as the black shoe collided next with his side, and he yelped with each blow that followed, curling in on himself, trying to protect himself. The human woman Kagome was screaming something Sesshomaru couldn't quite understand, couldn't quite hear. She was barely being restrained from throwing herself onto the half breed by the other two human, the bitter scent of her tears floating through the smell of burning and death from the village, and the smell of blood from the half conscious half demon at his feet.

The half breed's eyes rolled back in his head, his eyelids fluttering shut as Sesshomaru lifted the Kismet Blade directly over him, digging the point into the armored chest, just above his heart. He raised it above his own head, the final blow only moments away. The hysterical sobbing of the human woman escalated in both volume and his own comprehension. He could hear their words.

"NO! NO, PLEASE DON'T TOUCH HIM!"

"Sesshomaru!"

"Kagome, please-"

"DON'T KILL HIM PLEASE! DON'T KILL HIM, SESSHOMARU!"

"Inuyasha!"

" _Lord Sesshomaru!"_

His hand faltered a moment, the sword jerking terribly above his head.

Kill him. Kill the filthy half breed. Kill him and take his soul, then the soul of that pestilential miko.

 _But I don't…_

Kill him, fool!

 _I don't want…_

Swing the sword!

 _But… He's my brother…_

That filthy half breed is no brother of yours. You've never seen him as a brother before. Why start seeing him as a brother now? He's nothing more than a filthy creature, lower than scum, staining your father's legacy. Now is the time to purge the filth. Kill him!

That human woman Kagome continued to sob and scream. Inuyasha's eyelids fluttered a moment, the faintest strip of amber just barely visible from between thick, dark lashes. The jagged purple markings on Inuyasha's face remained, only accentuating Sesshomaru's vague, fevered thought.

 _He looks… Like chichi-ue..._

He's nothing like your father. KILL HIM!

 _I can't!_

KILL HIM. TAKE IN HIS SOUL. STRENGTHEN THE BLADE.

 _The Blade…_

YES. KILL HIM.

 _Rin…_

FORGET THE GIRL. KILL THE HANYOU. ABSORB HIS SOUL.

 _Rin was… Scared… She was scared of_ me…

The girl is mortal. She fears strength. Power.

 _She wasn't scared of me before._

She lied.

 _Rin… Could never lie._

Kill the hanyou, you fool!

He raised the Blade higher above his head, his arm shaking with the energy it took to both force himself to swing and to restrain himself. Air hissed past his teeth as he struggled. It would be so quick. _So_ quick and _so_ easy, just to kill the unconscious hanyou, laying immobile between his feet with the three long and bloody gashes from shoulder to hip, face startlingly serene and frighteningly familiar, like he were gazing into the past.

There was something else suddenly on the wind. Something besides the smell of the smoldering, dying village. Something other than the hanyou's blood. Something other than the tears, other than the fear rolling off the humans in waves, other than the screaming. It was a gentle thing, like a flower petal brushing past his cheek, a gentle, living breath, the presence of a teasing woman's smile...

 _No..._

KILL HIM.

 _No!_

KILL THE HALF BREED!

 _I cannot kill my brother!_

HE IS NO BROTHER OF YOURS. KILL HIM. TAKE HIS SOUL AND BREAK THIS PRISON! _KILL HIM!_

"I… Will… _NOT_!"

The Blade flashed. Rin and Kagome screamed. The fire of the village crackled and roared. The dead howled.

Sesshomaru fell to his knees with a soft _thump_ , staring at his trembling hands. The Kismet Blade lay innocently in the grass beside him, its silvery glow fading.

"Sesshomaru," Miroku breathed, watching the inu-daiyoukai in wonderment. His grip on Kagome's shoulder slackened, but she didn't make to move, being just as silent and staring as he and his wife were.

"Oh Sesshomaru-sama!" Rin cried, running forward and throwing herself at the demon. She kneeled in the grass in front of him, grinning with tears in her eyes and her hands clasped together. None of them expected him to reach forward and embrace the girl like she was the most precious thing on earth, his golden eyes screwed shut and brow knitted with barely contained relief. So when it did happen, the inutachi's jaws dropped even lower, if that was possible. "Sessh… Sesshomaru-sama?" He let her go after a few long moments and ran a long fingered hand down her face.

He was smiling.

Turning away from the inutachi, Rin, and their gape-mouthed fish impressions, his own expression darkened with concern as he shifted so he was kneeling next to Inuyasha. The hanyou groaned and stirred, his eyes opening slowly to see his half brother looming above him. "If... you're gonna kill me, do it fast," he croaked out, his eyes wavering between half and full lucidity. "I'm not gonna… Lay here and take it for much longer… Just… Don't let Kagome see…"

"Inuyasha," Kagome whimpered, pulling away from her married friends and crawling to her fallen half demon. She wrapped her arms around his chest and shoulders, lifting and holding him in a limp, half sitting position. She could barely wrap her arms around him entirely to hold him up, but it didn't stop her. Inuyasha pressed a half conscious little kiss against her jaw, closing his eyes again. Sesshomaru leaned away from the hanyou, watching the exchange with something like sadness.

"This Sesshomaru… _I_ … Am not going to kill you, Inuyasha."

Everyone looked at him: Inuyasha with his dim, half-lidded golden gaze. Rin with her bright, earth brown eyes. Miroku with his muddled, stormy grey stare. He swallowed hard and turned away.

"I…. Do not believe that I ever truly wanted to kill you. I've had the chance to. Many times. But I… I could never bring myself to kill you... _Brother_."

" _Brot…_ " The word trailed off of Kagome's tongue. Inuyasha looked too shocked to say anything. Sesshomaru had never been a man of many words, or ever really felt the need to explain himself, but he suddenly found the words coming: haltingly and painfully (at least for his pride), but they came.

"It was the Blade," he said lowly, looking away. "It… Made me think I really wanted to kill you. Really thought you were a dishonor to chichi-ue's name. Because you're a half br-" He paused, catching himself. "I mean… Half demon. But… I didn't think that. The Blade lied."

"Lord Sesshomaru…" Rin, hesitated for a moment, then smiled and pressed a warm hand against his upper arm. He turned towards the human girl, his eyes softening. He needn't say any more, and he wasn't planning on it either. He stood and walked away, his head held high and clearer than it had been in… A long time.

"Wait, Sesshomaru…" The daiyoukai halted, turning. Inuyasha was pulling himself up to his feet Kagome mumbling feebly about him not moving, but he ignored her, staggering forward to Sesshomaru. He came to an unsteady stop several yards away beside Tetsusaiga and grabbed the sword's hilt, lifting his chin and eyes narrowing. "How come you didn't kill me."

Sesshomaru stared at him, blinking once. The half demon looked mildly annoyed when he didn't answer. "It is none of your concern, Inuyasha."

"Like hell it is!" seethed the half demon, waving his sharp clawed hand around him, gesturing to the destruction and looking suddenly furious. "You've just killed a whole village of innocent people! You hurt my friends. Damn it, you hurt my _woman_! It's plenty my concern to know why you'd do that and all of a sudden just decide 'eh, nevermind'."

The demon glanced past the hanyou to the human woman, who had started to blush a little, then to Rin beside him, then back at Inuyasha. The wind ruffled his mokomoko-sama, that gentle presence brushing past his cheek once again like a flower pet.

There was really no need to tell him about why he'd come back.

"I do not like being taken advantage of as a fool," he said quietly, turning away. "It was simply time to prove to the Blade that it was no master of mine, and I was no vessel of it."

"Wait!" He'd just started to walk away again when he turned back. This time, the dark haired houshi, Miroku, had spoken. "You're just leaving the Blade behind?" Sesshomaru nodded once. "You can't."

Sesshomaru blinked, standing stock still. The tiniest crease formed between his brows. "Pardon?"

"Miroku is right," said the taijiya, watching the daiyoukai warily for a moment before relaxing her stance with her weapon. "The Kismet Blade is too dangerous. It needs to be destroyed."

"Destroyed…"

The demon slayer turned her pretty, stony gaze upon the demon. "Yes."

"But remember what that old mountain told us about the Blade?" Inuyasha said, glaring once more at Sesshomaru and turning away. "He said he'd tried to destroy it, right? He couldn't though."

"We still have to try," Miroku pressed, his knuckles white against his staff. "If we let the Blade fall into powerful hands again… Well, he might not be able to stop himself."

"The Blade has amassed too much power simply to be destroyed," Sesshomaru said shortly, making his way back to the inutachi.

"How did you even find the Blade, Lord Sesshomaru?" Rin asked quietly, looking up at him with her innocent eyes.

The truth was that ever since he had learned of Fuyohekis and what they were, he had actively been seeking them out for the past three years. They generally resided with mountain youkai or very old demons, and they were very difficult to find. On top of that, his search often yielded disappointing results. However, the eagerly watching humans and half demon did not need to know this. "It is unimportant, Rin," he said. The little girl looked slightly disappointed, but knew better than to press after getting an explicit reaction rather than his usual silence.

"So how do you plan to destroy it then, huh?" Inuyasha asked, raising a dark eyebrow and glaring at the daiyoukai with a steadily clearing gaze. His hand rested on his wound from the day before, trying the staunch the remainder of the sluggish and slowing flow.

"I'm not sure," Sango said, walking forward to kneel beside the Kismet Blade, which continued to lie innocently in the grass. "I don't suppose we could just try to smash it with the Tetsusaiga, do you? Without a host body, it doesn't seem like it can do much."

"Sounds good to me," grunted Inuyasha, wrenching his sword out of the ground. It transformed with a flash of youki in his hands into the great demon sword the Inu-no-Taisho had left in his possession. Sango stepped back, watching her friend with trepidation, everyone holding their breath. After a long moment, Inuyasha swung the sword, and sparks flew like a thousand white and blue fireworks going off at once.

" _Kekai_?"

Before he could do more than say the word, an arc of energy hit him squarely in the chest so he grunted and was knocked off his feet. Kagome made a worried noise and rushed to his side. "I'm fine, Kagome, git offa me..."

"The Blade has grown too powerful to simply destroy," Sesshomaru said again.

"Woulda been helpful of you to say that before!"

Sesshomaru blinked and frowned a little. "I did."

" _Keh_!" The half demon go to his feet, readying his sword. "Then I'll just have to hit it harder this time!"

"Inuyasha," said Miroku wearily, shaking his dark head.

"What!" whined the hanyou. He pouted at the look his friend gave him: a clear ' _now is not the time to be a brash idiot_ '. " _Fine_." He sheathed the Tetsusaiga.

"So what are we going to do?" Miroku asked to the group at large, wiping his brow and gazing sadly at the village. The fires were starting to die down a little, most of the huts having collapsed and burned most of their fuel.

"We fight it."

Everyone looked at Sesshomaru, varying degrees of ' _what?'_ written on each visage. He blinked again. "We are to fight the Blade. If our power is greater than the Blade's, it will be destroyed. If not, our souls are taken into it, and with Inuyasha and Kagome's souls, it is more than likely that it will finally break, freeing the evil souls and giving them incredible power."

"And where the heck did you hear that?" asked Inuyasha lamely. The fact of the matter was Sesshomaru had learned quite a bit about the Blade while under its influence. But the hanyou didn't need to know that.

"Some of us are more learned than twenty year old hanyous who spent their lives on the run."

Inuyasha scoffed and looked away.

"I will fight it," Sesshomaru said, drawing his Bakusaiga.

"Hold up, if you fight it and lose, then you're soul's gonna get sucked up in that Blade, and your soul's gotta be just as powerful as mine and Kagome's," barked Inuyasha, pointing a dire finger at the daiyoukai. "What makes you think that we're just gonna let you take care of this when you're the one who caused the whole issue in the first place!"

" _Inuyasha_." Inuyasha jumped and stared wide-eyed at Kagome, looking suddenly very scared of her and her dangerous undertone. She shook her head, scowling, then looked back up at Sesshomaru. "If you're fighting it, so am I. You need all the help you can get if the Blade's as powerful as we think it is."

"Uh, no, you're not!" Inuyasha grabbed Kagome by both her shoulders and shook her a little, looking angry. "I am not going to just let you fight when you might die, idiot!"

"Yes, I _am_! You need someone to purify those evil souls and unless you see another miko more powerful than I am, I'm gonna fight!"

"I said _no_ ," he shook her again, "You're _not_!"

" _Osuwari_!"

 _Ah_ , thought Sesshomaru as the rosary around the hanyou's neck glowed with sudden power, and he was pulled face first into the earth with an ungainly shriek. _So that's why he was scared_. He almost - _almost_ \- cracked a smile.

"If you're fighting, Kagome-chan, so am I," Sango said, completely ignoring Inuyasha and the string of muffled swearing coming from his mouth.

"No, Sango, you have a family," Kagome said softly, gripping her friend's hands.

"I'm here to protect my girls and my son," said the woman determinedly, gripping her friend's hands tighter. "And if that means giving my life to keep them safe, so be it."

"If my wife is fighting, so am I," Miroku added to the group at large. Sango spared him a glance and nodded.

" _Kagome-_ "

"Inuyasha." For a moment, hanyou and huaman stared at each other. Anger melted rather quickly and Inuyasha sighed, standing and brushing off his Fire Rat robes. From her firm and unyielding tone, it would be useless to try and convince her otherwise, but he had to try.

"Seriously Kagome," he said, resting his hands on her upper arms and sliding down to her elbows as she turned away from Sango. "Don't do this."

Her mouth set itself into a hard line for a moment. "The Blade's gonna after my soul almost as much as yours if we're right about it looking for powerful souls. If anyone needs to fight it, it's you, me, and Sesshomaru." Inuyasha sighed and looked away, his shoulders slumping a little. Kagome reached up and ran a thumb across his cheek, resting her forehead against his and adding in a much softer tone, "Hey… It'll be alright."

Inuyasha blinked. Kagome gently shrugged herself away from the half demon and gathered her fallen quiver of arrows. Her eyes were hard, but something about the way her mouth curled betrayed her little smile. "You guys ready?"

The inutachi nodded in unison, each of them readying their weapons, gazing fixedly at the Blade lying in the grass. Sesshomaru settled into a more offensive stance as well, sweeping Rin behind him and raising his own sword, gazing coldly at the Blade. The Blade, which had caused so many problems, which had _possessed him_ , which had made Rin _fear_ him, even for a second. The strongest surge of hate for the god blade, this prison of souls, ripped through his body like a physical presence, leaving a bitter taste on his tongue, doubling his grip on the Bakusaiga. Like so many other things, the thought of the Kismet Blade had a taste.

And it tasted _so_ wrong.

He, Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha swung their weapons. Kagome readied her sacred arrow, prepared to shoot the moment her friends moved out of the way.

Nothing made contact.

Instead, everyone was blown back, forced away by the flash of another barrier. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru left long gouges in the earth as they were pushed away, Inuyasha gripping Kagome tightly so she didn't fall, Sango and Miroku stumbling backwards and barely keeping their footing. The blue-white kekai intensified, drowning out the dying orange and bright yellow of the village and the sun. An unholy, unearthly screeching came from the barrier. Or rather, they all knew after a few moments of the shrieking intensifying, the souls inside the sword were making their voices heard.

Several blue-white arcs of energy flew from the screaming Blade like it had only minutes before with Inuyasha's attack, catching Sango and Miroku in their chests, despite Sango's best efforts to block it with her Hiraikotsu. Inuyasha flung himself over Kagome, the attacks aimed for both her and himself hitting him in the back. Sesshomaru, with his demon speed, dodged the arc so it crashed into the ground with a thunderous roar. The Blade continued to spark furiously, rising into the air within the pillar of light that was its godly barrier.

Miroku groaned, struggling to get back onto his hands and knees, but looking relatively uninjured. "Sango, are you hurt?" Sango mumbled something from beside him, but she followed him, getting to her own hands and knees. He smiled, then grimaced, resting his hand on his chest.

"Are you okay, Kagome?" Inuyasha asked a few feet away. He had managed to stay on his feet then the arcs of light had struck.

"Me? Are _you_ okay!" Kagome said worriedly, trying to pull him around and check his back. "Why didn't you just let it hit me, you idiot?"

Inuyasha blinked, his dark brows knitting together. "Of all the stupid things to say, that might be one of the stupidest." Kagome sighed in exasperation, then looked at the Kismet Blade over the hanyou's shoulder.

"We didn't do anything to it," Sango said, pushing herself into a sitting position and looking over her shoulder at the Blade as well. She looked stricken.

"The evil souls put up a barrier against us," Sesshomaru said darkly, swinging his sword through the air.

"Another barrier?" Miroku asked, standing with a rather pained expression. "It can stand against the Hiraikotsu, the Bakusaiga, the Tetsusaiga, and my staff?"

Sesshomaru nodded silently.

"Can we please just use my original solution and just hit it again, this time?" Inuyasha asked churlishly, letting go of Kagome and putting a hand to his wounds. They were already starting to heal again, but not fast enough.

A dark rumbling rose from the Blade's barrier. Everyone froze, Rin squeaking and hiding behind Sesshomaru's furs. " _Fools…_ "

The Blade was speaking.

"You think," rumbled the Blade in a voice of ringing metal like a gong and murderous glee, "That you petty humans, a half breed, and a simple demon can destroy the Kismet Blade? Inside of this prison is a hundred thousand souls of darkness: powerful demons, gods, humans with dark hearts. Gods and far more powerful demons could not destroy me. What makes you think you can?"

"Watch who you're calling half breed," Inuyasha growled, raising his sword.

"Inuyasha," Miroku said warningly, resting a hand of his friend's shoulder. "Now's not the time to-"

"That thing hurt your _wife_ , Miroku!" shouted the half demon, turning on his friend and throwing his hand away. "It hurt Kagome! It killed a village of innocent people! And now's the time you're telling me not to be rash?"

" _Brother_." Inuyasha's head snapped to Sesshomaru's slow, steady baritone. He looked livid.

"And _you_!" He flashed Tetsusaiga in the daiyoukai's direction. " _You're_ the one who found the damn thing in the _first_ place! _You_ let it _control_ you, _killed_ with it, tried to kill _us_!"

His elder brother's silence seemed only to infuriate him further. The only thing that seemed to keep him from flipping out entirely was Kagome holding onto his arm with both her own, shouting at him herself. He growled and turned away, stiff and fuming.

There was an unpleasant grating and rumbling coming from the Blade now, intensifying in volume until it was unmistakably, irrevocably a derisive laugh. The Blade - the souls inside, were laughing. "How amusing," it said. Had it been human, they could have sworn tears of mirth would have been streaming from its eyes. "Oh you poor, deluded half breed. Do you believe your righteous anger will help you this time? Do you think your desperation to protect that woman beside you?"

"Inuyasha!" Sango had grabbed his other arm, both she and Kagome holding him back with intense difficulty as he struggled against them, trying to reach the Blade, to cut it down.

"Oh, and you," Sango froze, feeling that the Blade's attention had turned. "What a tragic woman you are. Gone is your father, your little brother off fighting demons. You long for that life, don't you? Dream still of those days when you could fly off into the sunset on the back of your loyal companion - a companion who has left you for that life you dream of." It laughed again. "No happily married woman is supposed to have those woman!"

"No…" Sango looked scared, her fingers curling against her chest and tears filling her eyes. "No, you're wrong!"

"Am I?" The Blade chuckled. "And you, monk? Still searching for something to fill a void in your right hand? Killing the demons your wife wants so desperately to escape to? Absolutely terrified you won't stay faithful to her, even after your time together?"

"Stop it!" Kagome shrank a little as the Blade's attention turned to her, a heavy, evil, dark presence. It was silent for a few long moments.

"You're an odd one, aren't you." It was a statement, not a question. "Your soul is far more different. Purer." It chuckled again. Her heart throbbed against her chest, her grip tightening on Inuyasha's arm. "But nothing is hidden from the Kismet Blade. I can see your deepest fears, your insecurities, your darkest desires. That hanyou you cling to… Are you afraid of him? Perhaps not his claws or his demonic blood, but you do fear him. Fear he'll leave you still for a dead woman? Fear that he'll disappear and you'll wake up in the real world? Or perhaps you fear he's settling for the second best because the first has become unavailable to him? Oh you poor, miserable-"

" _Shut up_!" She'd had enough. "Just shut up! We let you start talking and looking into our hearts and heads and can't get a word in edgewise. Hearing you and all those evil souls… Speaking evil thoughts and putting doubts into our heads… You might be a god's blade, but you're filled with nothing more than disgusting, evil thoughts and demons!" She drew her bow. Everyone watched in fearful awe at her steely, furious expression. "YOU MAKE ME SICK."

The arrow flew, bathing them all in the dazzling light of her sacred powers. Instead of disintegrating upon contact with the kekai, or getting blown away like the previous attacks, the arrow hung in the air, gold and red sparks flying from the spot where sacred powers and dark aura met.

" _Hit it_!"

They needed no further prompting. With a low _whoosh,_ and streak of crimson, the barrier breaking red Tetsusaiga crashed into the barrier. It dissolved with a rush of wind and an enraged scream from the Blade. Now there was something rushing from the Blade itself, like fog spilling from under its figurative skin. They were souls. But oddly enough, they felt… Benevolent. Good.

The Blade was not happy about it. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" roared the evil souls remaining. "YOU CANNOT ESCAPE!"

Somehow, they all got the feeling that escape was the last thing on the souls' minds.

"They're here to help," Miroku said quietly. Inuyasha's ears flicked. Sesshomaru blinked.

Another bout of unholy shrieking filled the air, coming from the Blade. Now those silvery, smoky souls were swirling around the Blade, youki and lightning flying from where they touched the Blade. It seemed to be chipping with every passing second, like it was corroding before their very eyes.

"Now or never, guys!" Kagome shouted, frozen in her defensive stance against the howling wind.

"Don't need to tell me twice!" Inuyasha raised Tetsusaiga over his head. Sesshomaru followed in a similar fashion. Sango swung the Hiraikotsu. Miroku readied his sacred sutra. Their blows fell together, and this time, they met the blade. The dark souls all screamed at once, a thousand voices ranging from wild beasts to corrupt rulers. The most powerful blast of demonic wind exploded from the expelled kekai, hitting them all like a ton of bricks and throwing them back, save Kagome standing several feet away.

A whirlwind of dark youki twisted up suddenly, sucking in the dying flames of the village, pulling at their hair and clothes. Rin screamed, her feet beginning to leave the ground as she was hauled into the air, but Sesshomaru snatched her back, holding her close and squinting against the gale. Miroku and Sango thudded against the ground for the umpteenth time, their weapons stuck sharply into the ground and wavering in the gale. Inuyasha rolled to a halt with a groan, stopping by Kagome's slipping feet . Her arms were crossed before her in the vain effort to protect herself and quit sliding across the slick grass. She could just barely see him through her eyelashes, and beyond him…

 _There_.

Struggling to keep her eyes open, Kagome knocked another arrow and held her position carefully, her focus fixed on that beautiful, glinting, blood red jewel set into the Blade's cappe. The breath she drew was being sucked from her lungs by the whirlwind, but she fought it. She had to hit it.

The arrow flew from her bowstring as she summoned all the spiritual energy she possessed and exhaled, rushing forward like a glowing rose beam of light, crashing just barely against the jewel.

The wind blew out with a scream and a blinding darkness. Whether the scream came from the Kismet Blade, Rin, or herself, Kagome didn't know. And then suddenly, they were in full sunlight beside a barely smoldering ruin of a village, standing with a thousand glowing souls rising into the sky and whispering their thanks. Nothing remained of the Blade save a single burned patch of earth.

The inutachi staggered shakily to their feet, heartbeats erratic and breathing unsteady. Sesshomaru slowly opened his arms and released Rin, who blinked in the still, sunny air. Sango wiped a dribble of blood running into her eye, reaching for her husband's arm. He took her and and pulled her into a relieved embrace, running his hands through her hair and not saying anything. Inuyasha straightened, sheathing the Tetsusaiga and turning to Kagome with a relieved beam on his face. Her returning grin never quite slipped from her face as she collapsed to the ground.

" _K-Kagome_!"

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Kekai - a barrier of magic, spiritual energy, or demonic power

Kimono - a formal Japanese shirt/dress

Hanyou - a half demon/youkai

Daiyoukai - a very powerful demon/youkai

Inutachi - the group of Kagome, Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo; often translated to "Inuyasha and co." in the manga

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; "priestess"

Chichi-ue - an old and respectful term for "father"

Tetsusaiga - Inuyasha's sword; "Iron Crushing Fang"

Mokomoko-sama - that fluffy fur thing Sesshomaru wears

Houshi - a Buddhist preist

Taijiya - a demon slayer; "Slayer"

Fuyoheki - a stone which nullified demonic power; a nulling stone

Youkai - a demon/spirit

Youki - demonic power

Inu-no-Taisho - a title given to Inuyasha's father, literally "Great Dog General"

Bakusaiga - Sesshomaru's sword; "Explosive crushing fang"

Hiraikotsu - Sango's bone boomerang; "Flying bone"

Sutra - a Buddhist scripture

Cappe - a part of a sword, set between the blade and the cross-guard for and unknown use

* * *

 **A/N HOOOOLY shiz that was a lot of stuff. Sorry for another monster chapter, I guess :V But it was fun to write and it ran away from me?  
**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: Beauty and the Beast - Chase Holfelder (cover) (it's awesome)  
_


	14. Epilogue

**~ For pop ~**

* * *

 **Chapter 14**

 _Epilogue_

* * *

Kagome flinched at the sudden flash of the camera, but didn't stop smiling. She couldn't, even if she wanted to.

"Ow."

She grinned up at Inuyasha, her smile turning somewhat apologetic. "Sorry," she mumbled, loosening her grip on his arm.

" _Keh_." He was grinning too.

It had been a month since the Kismet Blade had been destroyed. Inuyasha had clambered out of the Bone Eater's Well that day with Kagome in his arms, rambling on about her fainting, an arrow, some wind, and the Kismet Blade. He'd looked so relieved when Mrs. Higurashi told him that her daughter would be fine, that all she needed was some sleep. And sleep she did: for nearly a whole day, Kagome slept in her room, guarded by an anxious and protective half demon. And of course, she had managed to wake up the one time he had gone downstairs to stretch his legs and eat. She'd wandered into the kitchen with a dull, hazy expression and a blanket around her shoulders, and before she could do more than say "good morning" was attacked in a bear hug by Inuyasha. Nobody was happier than he was that she was awake, not even her own mother.

And now…

"Kagome-chan!" Ayumi flung herself onto her friend, followed almost immediately by Yuka and Eri, each of them smiling brightly and holding bouquets of white magnolias and red roses.

"Hey, watch the dress," Kagome laughed, embracing each of her friends in turn and sighing.

"Has it sunk in yet?" Yuka asked, tugging at the neckline of her low-cut dress, trying to pull it up. Heaven knew she wasn't a huge fan of wearing dresses, but gosh dang it, it was for one of her best friend's wedding, and she would wear the stupid thing it it killed her! And judging from the looks some of the cousins were giving her, someone was going end up getting killed.

"Heck no," Kagome giggled, running her hand up and down her partner's arm. For once, they had managed to convince him to chance out of his usual gaudy attire for a more traditional black kimono. He hadn't been happy about it, but he did it.

"Bet it will tonight," winked Eri, pressing a finger to her lips. The gathered girls gasped at the scandalous little statement, Kagome turning bright red and turning away with a hand pressed to her cheek. "Hey, I'm just saying!"

"Just shout it for the world to hear, will ya?" Yuka rolled her eyes. Eri opened her mouth like she really was about to shout when three sets of hands clapped over her mouth. She said something, her voice muffled, and they all laughed. Kagome sighed again and looked up at her awkward companion to see that his face had gone bright red.

"I guess we'd better move," Ayumi said after the giggling subsided, glancing over her shoulder at the people waiting to congratulate the newlyweds. She waved and dragged Yuka and Eri away so the rest of the guests could shuffle forward.

It felt like a never-ending line of people. Most of them were relatives that Kagome could barely remember - great aunts with flapping jowls, gaunt brothers of her grandfather's who looked like they would keel over and die any second. There were older cousins and their children, some only a couple years old at most, others only babies, single aunts who were still looking for spouses of their own, friends of cousins and of her mother's. She was ecstatic when her mother's parents approached near the end of the line, giving them enthusiastic hugs and kisses.

Inuyasha, for his part, was holding up rather well. The majority of the guests didn't know about his half demon heritage, and so looked at his long white locks, odd eyes, and the black bandana hiding his ears with curious bewilderment. On top of that, he had only two guests: Sesshomaru and Shippo. The inuyoukai was currently sitting at a table alone, dressed in his usual kimono and hakama, though lacking his armor and furs. Shippo was over by the food tables in a crisp suit and tie, herding his four children with the help of his wife, Souten, his many tails hidden from mortal eyes.

It had been quite the shock - though it was probably not surprising, considering they were full youkai - to find out the two demons were here in the future, and that they had only now tried to speak to them. And honestly, it was a little awkward, seeing as they couldn't talk too freely in case something about the past or future slipped their tongues. Either way, the Higurashi's had managed to explain away the lack of "no Taisho's" to the other guests with the simple story that there really weren't any; they were all either dead or lived far too far away to come. It was morbid, but for the most part, very true.

Kagome turned back to Inuyasha and grinned again. He smiled back down at her, his fangs peeking out from under his lips. Kagome turned back to the guests and rested her head on Inuyasha's arm, savoring her one thought. They were _married_. Like she had told her friends, the fact still hadn't sunk in yet. They were still awkward, they were still shy, they still acted like best friends, still fought like bitter enemies. Nothing had changed quite yet. But then again, they had only just started their reception, so it wasn't like the fact had had time enough to set in either.

"Kagome, dear," Mrs. Higurashi said, trotting up to her daughter after the tide of guests and their congratulations to the newlyweds subsided, taking her hand. "I think you can go sit down now."

"Thank gosh," Kagome said, nodding and handing her mother her bouquet while she kicked off her shoes rather ungracefully. The heels were killing her, but they looked too good not to have worn.

"Got that right," Inuyasha agreed, taking her now free hand in his clawed one and leading her to the head table. She had opted for a more western styled wedding dress rather than a kimono like her grandfather had suggested. After all, she was going to be wearing clothes from 500 years in the past most of the time from now on, so she was going to savor the chance to wear a real wedding dress while she had it. The several layers of white tulle and fabric swished around her legs as she walked, held up by the wrapped bodice, which she tugged at like Yuka had only a little while before with her own dress. Inuyasha, in a rare show of suave charm, leaned down and brushed a few hairs out of his new wife's face raising a dark eyebrow when she giggled. They sat down at the table just as old man Higurashi stood, tapping his glass with his spoon so it rang, calling the gathered guests to attention.

"May I have your attention, please?" The low rumble of voices ceased, and he cleared his throat before saying in a slightly lower tone, "My dear daughter-in-law, Michiko."

Mrs Higurashi bowed a little in thanks, grinned as the crowd clapped, then gestured to the smiling Kagome and Inuyasha. "I'd like to thank you all for coming out tonight. This really is a special occasion for me and I'm glad you could all make it. It's not everyday you give away your only daughter, after all." She smiled cheekily. There were a few well meaning chuckles from the gathered guests, which prompted her into continuing. "As you're all well aware, a wedding is the mark of union between two loving souls, their commitment to each other, and the fulfillment of every little girl's dream, and let me tell you the number of times I sat through stuffed animal weddings with her. How fast she's grown up."

Kagome quietly smacked Inuyasha's hand under the table. He must have spent too much time with Miroku, because his hand had suddenly grabbed her leg just above the knee, and now he was grinning like a fool when she entwined her fingers with his. Mrs. Higurashi continued, though Kagome could have sworn a tiny grin had appeared at the sight from the corner of her eye. "As a matter of fact, my dear Kagome has grown up into quite the amazing woman; a woman that her father - my dear husband Tamotsu, who passed away over thirteen years ago - would be proud of. A woman that I know he _is_ proud up. I'd like to raise a toast in his memory. To Tamotsu." There was an answering rumble, and everyone drank. Kagome wiped a lone tear from her cheek as her mother blinked her own tears away and continued.

"Kagome and Inuyasha's first meeting was undoubtedly by fate. There is absolutely no way that the hands of the gods were not involved. "She chuckled. "At first, I distinctly remember that they did not like one another, always arguing, always fighting. However, a lot happens in almost five years, and even though they still argue and row with each other like cats and dogs (Sesshomaru and Shippo grinned toothily from the back), here's the result." There was a louder, more genuine round of appreciative chuckling, and Mrs. Higurashi turned to Kagome and Inuyasha with a little smile of her own. "Inuyasha, you've changed my precious daughter more than you could ever know, and she's changed you just as much. When we met, I'll be honest, you were rude, brash, and violent. And while you still have your moments, you never once failed to protect Kagome when it came down to it, and you proved that you have a kind, gentle heart.

"Kagome." She turned to face her daughter now. "When you first met Inuyasha, you were my wonderful, beautiful daughter whose soul was looking for an adventure of a lifetime, something that could teach you to be kind and strong in the face of adversity. Then you met him, and either with him or through him, you learned that. Inuyasha, you made my daughter strong. Kagome, you taught that boy how to love and trust. And I trust that you two will forevermore love and protect each other in your new lives together. To Kagome and Inuyasha, the bride and groom."

Mrs. Higurashi raised her glass a second time, and followed suit, cries of "to the bride and groom" cut short by quick gulps. Everyone cheered.

 _ **} } }{ }{}{}{}{}{ }{ { {**_

"Do you have everything, dear?"

"Yes mama."

"Medicine? Bandages? Ramen?"

"Yes, mama. We might not even need the medicine and bandages, you know."

Mrs. Higurashi gave her daughter a skeptical look, and Kagome grinned sheepishly. "Okay, we might need the medicine and bandages. Who knows if or when we're going to be attack by demons, I guess."

"That's right," nodded the elder woman, but smiling nonetheless. She wasn't worried. Not when her daughter had Inuyasha. She shook her head as Kagome zipped up her backpack, patting it like it was a small animal and threading her arms through the straps. "I still can't believe it. A married woman."

"Mama," said Kagome, a little embarrassed.

"Well, you can come back home whenever you feel like it, of course," said Mrs. Higurashi, following her daughter out of the house. Kagome's dark curtain of hair swung back and forth on either side of the backpack she carried. She was back in her traditional miko hakama and haori, her sacred bow in hand and a gleam in her eye. "And I'm fully expecting a little dog-eared grandbaby in the next year."

Kagome stopped in her tracks and spun around, looking mortified. "M- _mama_! That's not... Why would you-"

"Oi." Inuyasha chose that moment to show up from the house, out of the black ceremonial kimono and back in the Robe of the Fire Rat. "What's going on?"

Mrs. Higurashi ignored him, focusing her attention of her daughter. She could barely contain her mirth. "You're married now, dear. That's simply a step forward in the marriage."

"What is?" Inuyasha asked, his brow furrowing in concern.

" _Nothing_!" Kagome glared red-faced at her mother. The alarmed expression on her husband's face grew. She reached for his hand and yanked him into the well house, not stopping until they stood beside the old structure and were looking down into its dark depths. Souta was already standing inside, hugging his sister and leaving.

"Remember dear!" Mrs. Higurashi called from outside, bent on embarrassing her daughter still. "I said I wanted at least six grandbabies!"

" _MAMA_!" Kagome buried her face in her hands to hide the flush. Inuyasha was similarly red when she peeked at him through her fingers. He turned away shyly. Like she had thought at the reception, not much had changed between them yet; they were still awkward and shy as ever, and she really didn't think that Inuyasha would ever get used to being affectionate or receiving affection. She sighed, her fingers running down her face and to her neck. "Sorry, Inuyasha. I don't know why she likes to do that so much…"

"Don't be sorry," he said, shrugging and looking back down the Bone Eater's Well. "I mean, she loves you, right? She's just teasing, yeah?"

"Yeah, I suppose…"

"And besides." He turned to her with another shy grin, taking her hand. "We _are_ married now, so…"

"So… What?"

"So I can do this without asking." Inuyasha leaned down, momentarily pressing his forehead against his wife's - his _wife's_! - and kissing her. And she kissed him back, wholeheartedly.

They stood there for a long time. They didn't see Souta peeking at them through a gap in the well house doors, didn't hear his mingled disgust and amused thought of "now he really is Inu-no-nii-chan". They didn't hear Mrs. Higurashi humming happily as she passed by the Goshinboku, bowing her head in a silent prayer of thanks to the old tree because if Inuyasha hadn't been pinned to it, and if Kagome hadn't met him, she didn't know what her life would have been like today. They didn't feel the pressing worry of the Kismet Blade now that it was destroyed, didn't see the kami smiling kindly down on their embraced figures, because no matter what someone said or believed about fate, fate simply could not undo the cloth it wove.

Kagome and Inuyasha broke away a moment, breathing shallow and eyes half closed. Almost without thought, Inuyasha scooped up Kagome, holding her tight against his chest and kissing her once again. "Come on, wife," he murmured against her lips. "Everyone's waiting for us." Kagome giggled breathily.

Without a word more, silver haired inu-hanyou leapt through the Bone Eater's Well, passing through five hundred years time, holding that precious human woman he loved more than life itself tightly in his arms.

 _} } }{ }{}{}{}{}{ }{ { {_

 _ **Owari**_

 _} } }{ }{}{}{}{}{ }{ { {_

* * *

 _Glossary:_

Youkai - a demon/spirit

Kimono - a type of formal Japanese shirt/dress

Hakama - a type of formal Japanese folded pants

Miko - a Shinto shrine maiden; "priestess"

Haori - a type of formal Japanese shirt

Inu-no-nii-chan - a name Souta uses for Inuyasha; literally "dog brother"

Goshinboku - the Tree of Ages; the Sacred Tree

Hanyou - a half demon/youkai

* * *

 **A/N The names of Kagome's parents (Michiko and Tamotsu) are a direct reference to the chapter "D is for Daughter" in my collection of Inuyasha one shots and drabbles, _Alphabet Soup._ It's good, I promise, you should go read it XD**

 **Holy shiznick, that was the last chapter.**

 **tHAT WAS THE LAST CHAPTER.**

 **HOLY SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS.**

* * *

 _Currently listening to: Pictures of You - The Last Goodnight_


	15. Author's Notes

_**Title:**_ _The Kismet Blade_

 _ **Author:**_ _File 13_

 _ **Cover Artist:**_ _File 13_

 _ **True Word Count:**_ _39488_

 _ **Story Page Count:**_ _91 pages (Arial, 11, single space)_

 _ **Chapters:**_ _14_

 _ **Average Word Length:**_ _5.664_

 _ **Total Unique Glossary:**_ _47_

* * *

 _(I had wanted to create an Inuyasha fic for the longest time before writing this. The problem was, the only thing that had come to mind was_ Wishing _, and as that was OC centric, with only mentions of Inuyasha, Kagome, and everyone else (so far…), it was not… Popular. At all. I mean, neither is_ The Kismet Blade _, but it's more popular than that was. I hope that changes. Anyway, I had no idea what I wanted Kismet Blade to end up being like in the beginning of drafting, so I started writing down all the little ideas that popped into my head and formed that into the story. These were all the notes made before I even started planning the chapters. Obviously, not every idea made it to the final cut. The bolded note is the point where_ The Kismet Blade _finally started to form.)_

-Enemies of destiny - Cut the Red String of Fate

-Enemy that's terrified to die - Gives his enemies (Kagome and Inuyasha) immortality upon his death

-Kagome is not married… Yet. However, she and Inuyasha are in a courting relationship at this point.

-Sango has to return to being a Slayer

-Village is burned (or not)

-Miroku has a new weapon?

-The Well is open, and Kagome goes to visit her family every few weeks

 **-Sesshomaru is out to finally kill Inuyasha, and searches for a new and powerful artifact from a dog god (Inukami-sama) to aid him.**

-Rin continues to follow him, no matter what, but tries to convince him not to kill his brother in such cold blood.

-Sesshomaru is unable to finally kill his brother despite him being incapacitated, ending up breaking down and sobbing not only at his weakness, but how terrible he feels about trying to kill his little brother in an inexplicable show of emotion.

-This weapon has something, SOMETHING to do with fate. WHAT, THOUGH? Does it sever fates who are tied to the unlucky person who is cut? Does it sever the fate of the weilder? Was it a gift FROM this being of fate to bring an end to those precious moments of time? WHAT?

-The sword (named the Kismet Blade) (coz screw the fact that "kismet" is arabic or something) was originally created to take the souls of those primitive beings who died early on (ie death of a child, death of those killed by bandits, etc…), and transpose them into new lives. However, when the Dog God disappeared, leaving behind only the Kismet Blade, it was used for evil purposes, as a prison would, for the souls of the enemies of those who wielded it. Those vengeful spirits and the evil acts performed by the Blade corrupted it so that it becomes more powerful with each new soul, and takes over the mind of the wielder.

-Sesshomaru found the blade inside a demon (like Gakusanjin) who held a Fuyoheki (a Nulling Stone). After learning of these Nulling Stones and how they masked youki, Sesshomaru began to actively seek out demons with them, searching for new power. When he incapacitates an ancient youkai in possession of one, he found the Kismet Blade.

-(Need a better name for this "Fate". Or just leave it at that, as a force rather than a being.) Fate's motto is "All good things must come to an end".

-(EDIT: "Fate" is not the enemy. Fate was simply the thing which the Inukami held dominion over. However, the Kismet Blade IS. The Kismet Blade (somewhat similar to Sounga in movie 3) is a sentient being. Unlike Sounga, the Kismet Blade is a collective of souls and vengeful spirits (similar to the Shikon Jewel), and is actively searching for new power. Something like the soul of a hanyo - where demon youki and human spiritual power are perfectly balanced - or of a priestess and her reiki are something highly sought after, as are the souls of daiyoukai.)

-Sesshomaru was indeed possessed by the Blade after he took it from the old youkai who harbored it in the hope of sealing the Blade. He didn't know it, of course, and believed himself stronger than such, but he's young, and he's still pretty naive, and he's nowhere near the power of a god.

-The words to live by according to the Blade is due to its thirst for power: "good things" are more powerful than bad things, and the Blade wants more power. That and it's an existentialist. Of course, lol.

-Kagome counters this saying that those good things may come to an end, but their effects would last lifetimes to come: the perfect snow may melt, but the water it becomes gives life to the plants and animals. The reflection in the water may be marred, but it could always return/that makes the joy it gave all the more precious. The ember may die out, but to the desperate man drowned in darkness, that small light may be his breath of hope.

-Galway Girl - An Inuyasha AU influenced by the Ed Sheeran song of the same name (but only the chorus, really) and my personal love of Irish music, Kagome is in an Irish band and falls in love with an Englishman/American by the name of Inuyasha (who is part of a rock and roll band himself)

-Because I'm a sucker and a Mormon, Sesshomaru's relationship to the Kismet Blade could be related to us and Satan and sin. Sesshomaru doesn't think that he is being possessed, he believes he's strong enough to resist it. Like us, we think we're strong enough to resist temptation, even when we're not. We don't even notice that we're so far gone until it's almost too late. Sesshomaru doesn't realize that his little demons inside of him were being amplified to the point of not even being his until he's actually confronted with the chance to kill Inuyasha, which he doesn't.

-Sango and Miroku's son is named "Hirohito" (meaning "Unknown", which is a fitting name considering NOTHING is known about him), or "Gesshoku" (literally meaning "Month color" or "Moonlight").

-Due to a mistranslated fan translation of chapter 559, his name is not "Komori"

-Inuyasha Anastasia AU (esp the boat dancing scene)

-Shizukesa (daughter (means serenity/tranquility))

-RULE FOR USING JAPANESE: use it sparingly, for emphasis, for titles, or proper names (aka nouns). Nouns are easier to pick up on than grammar nuances. No "ne's". EVER.

-KAH-goh-may, **not** kuh-GOH-may. I HATE the english dub mainly for this very reason.

-Whenever Sesshomaru is possessed by the Blade and he speaks of fate, the word "fate" is capitalized to "Fate", to signify that it's not really fate he speaks of, but the Kismet Blade.

* * *

CHAPTER SUMMARIES

 _1\. Intro (everything's perfect)_

 _2\. Intro 2 (meeting the blade) (Inukimi and Sesshy)_

 _3\. Sesshomaru returns after seeing Kagome has returned to their world, approaching Rin despite the pleadings for Kaede to stay away from her. He asks Rin if she would like to accompany him, to which she readily agrees. Some fanservice with Inukag._

 _4\. The Inutachi heads off on what they think is a rescue mission to save Rin, at Kaede's request. They meet and ancient old demon with another Fuyoheki, who informs them of the Kismet Blade, and how it's in Sesshomaru's possession - or rather, how it is in possession of him. The Demon also mentions that the daiyoukai had mentioned trying to kill his brother with the Kismet Blade. None of them know it was Sesshomaru who stole the blade._

 _5\. The group goes back to Kaede in search of answers, but when she has none (having never heard of the Blade), the only thing the group can think of to do is to try and go through the Well back to Kagome's time and see if her grandfather has any knowledge on the subject. Inuyasha, unwilling to let Kagome go alone lest he lose her forever, goes with._

 _6\. Sesshomaru and Rin chapter. Rin swears to herself that she will always be with Lord Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru kills a demon who accosted them without mercy as he begs for it, and Rin once again swears that she will always stay with her lord, though more hesitantly and with less resolve than she did before.. She senses something has changed about him, and it scares her. But she won't go back on her word._

 _7\. Kagome and Inuyasha make it successfully back to Kagome's world, where her family is ecstatic to see her. Her grandfather is not there, however - he's at a doctor's appointment and would be back later that day - so Kagome decides to take (a very reluctant) Inuyasha out on a little adventure, calling up her friends to go on one big date. (coz fan service)_

 _8\. When Jii-chan (Gramps) returns, Kagome and Inuyasha question him about the Kismet Blade. He tells them what he knows; about the Blade holding vengeful souls and having belonged to a god, and its original purpose before becoming corrupt. With their new knowledge, and after being teased and tormented with marriage plans, they return to the Feudal Era._

 _9\. Continuing on, the Inutachi meets with Sesshomaru, who brutally murders the ancient old youkai. They approach him warily, and ask Rin to return with them, but she says she would always stay by her Lord's side. Kagome notices her hesitancy and is worried, begging her to return. They leave, though not without Sesshomaru stabbing Inuyasha through the gut and injuring Kagome immediately afterwards in front of his eyes, telling him the time was not yet come to kill him._

 _10\. Around the fireside, while trying to heal up Inuyasha, the group discusses Rin's reaction, their faith in her in trying to help Sesshomaru come to his senses, their worries that he might end up hurting her, and Sesshomaru's reactions. They discuss and understand that Sesshomaru had gotten the Blade to kill Inuyasha with it. Inuyasha and Kagome share a sweet moment by the fireside while they think that their friends are asleep (lol, psych! They're watching. They ship them harder than anyone XD). He says he was so worried about her, and he was scared for her and that he can't protect her, and she explains that she really doesn't care if he's not strong enough. That's not why she loved him. Their conversation leads him to asking her to finally marry him._

 _11\. Another Sesshomaru chapter? Short, mostly an inner monologue or Sesshomaru's conflicting emotions about if he really wanted to kill his brother, his sadness that Rin was not there, and how he felt about the Kismet Blade. He starts questioning to himself whether he really is possessed or not._

 _12\. Mostly refreshed, the Inutachi goes to find Sesshomaru and Rin, feeling that their greatest worry should be her as the Blade had possessed Sesshomaru, and he might hurt her. He finds them, however, ready to kill Inuyasha, luring them to a village where he had slaughtered all the inhabitants. Fighting ensues. Tetsusaiga is lost, Inuyasha becomes a demon and is injured. Kagome runs forward to protect him, and he is purified (purified form). Sesshomaru bats her away and prepares to kill his brother._

 _13\. Sesshomaru attempts to kill a half-conscious Inuyasha as his friends watch on. Kagome watches (the poison that had been injected into her body in chapter 10 was dormant until given the order) as he struggles with himself until he finally realizes that he truly doesn't want his brother to die, and he doesn't really want to kill him. Instead, he throws the Kismet Blade away. The group destroys the Kismet Blade (with Tetsusaiga and Tenseiga?). It puts up a fight, the evil souls inside it trying to protect their prison - which would have given them immense power should they absorb as much - and the good souls assisting the inutachi._

 _14\. Epilogue. Kagome and Inuyasha get married, happily ever after, Mrs Higurashi likes to tease poor Kagome too much._

* * *

STORY SUMMARIES

 _\- He always swore he would be the one to kill his brother. Now, that time has come. The problem is, this prey likes to run, and this prey and his lover and friends can fight back. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and those measures are a weapon no one was meant to have._

 _\- He always swore he would be the one to kill his brother. Now, that time has come. The problem is, this prey likes to run, and this prey and his lover and friends can fight back. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and those measures are a weapon no one was meant to have. And when life seems perfect, Fate will intervene..._

 _\- A lot can happen in three years: people change, plans evolve, weapons are uncovered. But this weapon is unlike anything any of them have ever seen before. Can the inutachi stop Fate? Or will their souls end up being the key to a prison locked for millennia? And, all joking aside, will Kagome and Inuyasha ever grow up?_

* * *

 _(One of the original beginnings to the story, this was written both with the idea that Kagome and Inuyasha had discovered the Well was completely open again long before the story, and while I was watching a cooking show on Netflix. So that happened. Obviously, things have changed.)_

"Sis, when are you getting married?"

"I'm not getting married, Souta."

"But I heard you talking to ma about it."

"I'm not getting married."

A boy and a girl sat in a living room, lounging against the couches and watching some American cooking show. The window was open, a breeze flowing past the curtains, and the air was cool; fall was fast approaching. The girl was laying on her side across the couch, her eyes half-lidded as she stared slack mouthed at the screen. She looked about 18. The boy, her brother, was several years younger, sitting cross legged on the floor and gazing avidly at the brightly colored foods.

"I bet you are," retorted the brother. "You keep going over to the Feudal Era ever since it opened. Inu-no-nii-chan is in love with you."

The elder sister glared at the boy. A fat, greying cat leapt gingerly up onto the couch beside her knees. "What on earth brought this up?"

"I dunno. But you do _want_ to marry Inuyasha, right?"

"Explain to me what makes you think that's gonna happen anytime soon?"

"Oi, I dunno what you're talking about, but you better not be badmouthing me."

Both brother and sister jumped violently and whipped around to face this new voice. "Inuyasha!"

* * *

 _(This was originally going to be a part of chapter seven (They Knew He Loved Her), added as a fun little description of Inuyasha through the eyes of Kagome's modern day friends - Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi. Unfortunately, the pacing and the style of the chapter didn't allow the part to fit, but I still love this description just too much to just delete it. Maybe I'll use it for another story.)_

"Kagome, just look at him," Yuki giggled. "The only to describe him is as a pretty boy, and we mean that in the nicest way possible."

She stared open mouthed at her friends, then at Inuyasha, realization dawning rather comically across her face. He might be strong, but he was very, very thin. He may have been a half-demon, but his mother was indeed a princess, and her beauty had been passed into her son's face. He may have tried to hide it, but Inuyasha was really just as innocent and confused in love as he had been as a child.

They were right. Inuyasha really was a pretty boy.

* * *

 _(I'm not exactly sure why this is here, but it is, and I'm not deleting anything, so… Yeah, these were puns for never-made posters for that play I was in for the main villians (in order), the Witch, the Queen, the Wolf, Rumplestiltskin, and the Fairy. I played the Witch, in case you were wondering.)_

 _Puns for Theatre posters_

Move, Witch, get out the way

Royal tea (queen with tea)

Resistance is feudal

Beg her royal pardon

Howl's it going?

This pup's mutty hungry

Not your average Toto

Gotta hand it to short people

Au! Guess my name!

Guess my name!

This ain't Tinkerbell/the Tooth Fairy

Hey! Listen! Watch out!

Better than Tinkerbell

* * *

 _(This part was originally going to be the bridge from what became the end of chapter 9 and the beginning of chapter 10, as originally it was going to belong to the same chapter. Chapter 9 ended up being too long, and a time skip was put into place. I do reference several descriptions in this in the beginning of chapter 10 to make up for the skip.)_

Kagome's expression cleared up at once as she flung her arms over the unconscious half demon. "Inuyasha!" she screamed, her vision blurring with tears once again. " _Inuyasha_!"

"Kagome!" There was Miroku. And Sango, clutching Hiraikotsu in one hand and Rin's in the other. She could barely make out their faces through the tears as she clung to the Fire Rat robe on Inuyasha's shoulders, slick with blood. She was on the verge of hyperventilating, and she knew it, her breaths coming in short sobs and trying to pull the hanyo's head to her chest.

Kneeling, Miroku pressed two fingers to Inuyasha's neck, searching, searching… "He's alive," he said after a moment. "But only just. We need to get him patched up."

That was easier said than done, they discovered, with the heavy and unconscious half demon, and Kagome clinging desperately to his body. Had Sango not been there to hug the poor girl, Miroku knew he would never have been able to lug Inuyasha onto his back and carry him to their camp. Shippo, who had been protecting Hirohito until Sesshomaru's departure, gathered as many blankets as he possibly could and made a makeshift bed by some of the bushes. His little face was pale with fear as he watched the monk carefully drop the wounded half demon onto them, and immediately reach into one of the traveling packs for bandages. "Shippo, Rin," Sango said in a surprisingly calm voice over Kagome's slowly evening sobs. "Please go to the river and get us some water."

* * *

 _(This was the original beginning for the epilogue/chapter 14. I actually rewrote the gosh dang thing like four times before I ended up with something I'm mildly happy with. I didn't/don't know what Shinto wedding traditions are like well enough to write something like that. Heck, I don't know how Christian weddings work well enough to even write about one of those. I've only ever really been to receptions, so far as I remember. My family's gotten to that point between generations that there's a good 3-10 years before there's marriages again. I'm actually going to a funeral on the second. So… Either way, I need to write more dialogue, but this just didn't turn out.)_

"Well, are you ready, my dear?"

"As I'll ever be."

"You know, dear, we can postpone for a few more minutes if you need to get under control."

"I'm fine, mama, I promise."

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Gramps, you make it sound like I'm doing this against my will!"

"But are you sure?"

"Yes, grandpa, I'm positive. There's nothing I want more in the world."

"Are you-"

"Father."

"Alright, alright. If it truly is what she wants."

"It is."

"Okay."

"Sweetheart?"

"Yes, mama?"

"Are you ready?"

"Yes, mama."

"Okay. I'll go tell everyone then."

Mrs. Higurashi patted her daughter on her cheek and left the room, tugging her father along beside her. Kagome watched the door close with a soft click through the mirror and sighed, laying her hand on her chest. Her heart was beating far too fast.

* * *

 _(This was the original rendition of the wedding speech - most of it is exactly the same, word for word, but it was originally given by Kagome's grandfather rather than her mother. I wouldn't normally put it in here, but a couple of the descriptions were too good to get rid of forever, specifically the description of his tone. I thought it was so funny while I was writing it. Then again, it was late at night, I was sleep deprived as always, and I'm already super easy to make laugh, so that doesn't go to tell you much.)_

"May I have your attention, please?" The low rumble of voices ceased, and he cleared his throat before speaking, gesturing to the smiling Kagome and Inuyasha. "I'd like to thank you all for coming out tonight. This really is a special occasion for me and I'm glad you could all make it. It's not every day you give away your only granddaughter, after all." He smiled indulgently, gap-toothed and wrinkled as ever. He was wearing a full on formal kimono as well. There were a few courteous chuckles from the gathered guests, which prompted him into continuing. His voice took on that matter-of-fact tone it usually did whenever he talked about 'rare treasures' and 'ancient family heirlooms'. "As you're all well aware, a wedding is the mark of union between two loving souls, their commitment to each other, and the fulfillment of every little girl's dream, and let me tell you the number of times I sat through stuffed animal weddings with my daughter Aki, and then my granddaughter. How fast she's grown up."

Kagome quietly smacked Inuyasha's hand under the table. He must have spent too much time with Miroku, because his hand had suddenly grabbed her leg just above the knee, and now he was grinning like a fool when she entwined her fingers with his. Gramps continued with another little bough. "As a matter of fact, my dear Kagome has grown up into quite the amazing woman; a woman that her father - my son Tamotsu, who passed away over thirteen years ago - would be proud of. A woman that he is proud up. I'd like to raise a toast in his memory. To Tamotsu." There was an answering rumble, and everyone drank. Kagome wiped a lone tear from her cheek as her grandfather continued.

"Kagome and Inuyasha's first meeting was undoubtedly fate. There is absolutely no way that the hands of the gods were not involved. Ar first, I remember quite distinctly that they did not like one another, always arguing, always fighting. I myself will be the first to admit I didn't like him much either. However, a lot happens in almost five years, and even though they still argue and row with each other, here's the result." There was a louder, more genuine round of appreciative chuckling, and gramps turned to Kagome and Inuyasha with a little smile. "Inuyasha, you've changed my precious granddaughter more than you could ever know, and she's changed you just as much. When we met, you were rude, brash, and violent. And while you still have your moments, you never once failed to protect Kagome when it came down to it, and you proved that you have a kind, gentle heart."

* * *

 **Oh boy! This marks the first time EVER that I have written a full-length fanfiction… And ACTUALLY finished it. Wow. Only took me, like, five years to get that done, huh? Jeeze, wow. Now what do I do, huh? Maybe I should write something that either a) makes more sense (good luck with that, stupid), or b) seems like a better idea. Yeah, I think I'ma go with option two, thank you. So be on the lookout for my new story - a modern gang AU set in the same universe as the chapter "J is for Jumped" in my series of Inuyasha prompt based one-shots, _Alphabet Soup._**

 **But holy crow, I can't believe that _Kismet Blade_ is over… I'm not disappointed in the least, don't get me wrong, hahah! It was long, and I struggled through the writing process. But hopefully I became a better writer through writing it; I actually got a comment from _ that mentioned that in earlier chapters, I tended to write very long-winded/run on sentences. Looking back, I can sort of see where I went for sort of elegant, flowy type of writing style and failed miserably. Maybe I'll go back and edit the previous chapters? I know that some of them need to be with spelling mistakes or missing details that - now that I've finished the story - are pretty crucial (I'm looking at you, magically migrating claw marks on Kagome's back!).**

 **Either way, thank you to those of you who took pity on a poor, deprived, unmotivated idiot and left reviews and kind comments. Your genuine interest is really what helped me write through classes, finals, family loss, and downright depression.**

 **Thank you so much.**

 ** _~ File 13_**

P.S. Have fun, don't die, don't do drugs, love yourselves, byeeeee!

* * *

 _ **~ For Pop ~**_

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